GOVT WILL NOW NOT WAIT FOR VETERANS TO ACCEPT OROP FORMULA - FINAL ANNOUNCEMENT EXPECTED IN NEXT 24 HOURS WELL BEFORE BIHAR POLLS ARE NOTIFIED

INDIA TODAY EXCLUSIVE INSIDE TRACK ON GOVT THINKING TOP SOURCES EXPLAIN FINAL OROP FORMULA 'THIS IS MAXIMUM GOVT CAN DO' 'FEW SERVICEMEN HOLDING UP RESOLUTION' 'MOST SERVICEMEN DEMANDS ACCEPTED' 'ANNUAL REVISION ADMINISTRATIVE NIGHTMARE' 'HOPING FOR AMICABLE RESOLUTION' 'GOVT HAS TO CONSIDER OVERALL PICTURE' 'GOVT CALLS UPON ALL PATRIOTS' ---------------- TOP LEVEL GOVT SOURCES HAVE REVEALED TO INDIA TODAY THE DETAILED LOGIC BEHIND THE GOVT'S OROP FORMULATION GOVT SOURCES SAY THAT TWO OUT OF THE THREE MAJOR DEMANDS OF VETERANS HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE GOVT GOVT SOURCES SAY THE GOVT HAS STRETCHED ITSELF TO THE MAXIMUM LIMIT POSSIBLE TOP GOVT SOURCES TOLD INDIA TODAY, 'THIS IS THE BEST THE GOVT CAN DO' TOP SOURCES: GOVT HAS TO KEEP OVERALL PICTURE IN MIND SOURCES: ONLY A FEW SERVICEMEN HAVE BEEN HOLDING OUT OBJECTIONS. MANY VETERANS HAVE REACHED OUT AND SAID THE AGITATION SHOULD END NOW TOP GOVT SOURCES: GOVT HAS TO BE MINDFUL OF CONCERNS OF OTHER WINGS OF THE GOVT SOURCES: AFTER NEXT PAY COMMISSIONS OTHER GROUPS TOO CAN START MAKING EXTRAVAGANT DEMANDS GOVT WILL NOW NOT WAIT FOR VETERANS TO ACCEPT OROP FORMULA FINAL ANNOUNCEMENT EXPECTED IN NEXT 24 HOURS WELL BEFORE BIHAR POLLS ARE NOTIFIED VETERANS HAD INITIALLY DEMANDED IMPLEMENTATION OF OROP FROM APRIL 1 2014, WHILE BABUS HAD INITIALLY SUGGESTED THAT OROP BE IMPLEMENTED FROM FY 2015 GOVT HAS NOW AGREED ON 1 JULY 2014 AS THE START DATE FOR ONE RANK ONE PENSION, WHICH IS ONE MONTH AFTER THE MODI GOVT CAME TO POWER VETERANS WANTED THAT THE PENSION OF SERVICEMEN RETIRING IN 2013 BE THE BASIS FOR CALCULATING ONE RANK ONE PENSION THIS SECOND MAJOR DEMAND OF THE SERVICEMEN HAS ALSO BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE MODI GOVT HOWEVER, THE GOVT IS VERY CLEAR THAT THE THIRD DEMAND OF VETERANS ON ANNUAL PENSION REVISION IS SIMPLY NOT PRACTICAL GOVT REJECTS THE CLAIM OF VETERANS THAT THE IMPACT OF ANNUAL REVISION IS ONLY RS 80 CRORE SOURCES SAY GOVT'S CALCULATIONS ESTIMATE THAT IMPACT OF ANNUAL OROP REVISION IS ESTIMATED TO BE BETWEEN RS 500-1000 CRORE GOVT SOURCES SAY THAT GOING BY CALCULATION OF VETERANS IMPACT OF ANNUAL REVISION IS LIKELY TO BE ROUGHLY RS 40 PER EX-SERVICEMAN THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 17 LAKH RETIREES AT PRESENT. IF THE CALCULATIONS OF THE VETERANS ARE CORRECT AND THE TOTAL IMPACT IS ONLY RS 80 CRORE THEN THE AVERAGE BENEFIT ACCRUING TO EVERY SOLIDER IS ROUGHLY RS 500 ANNUALLY. THIS WORKS OUT TO AN ADDITIONAL INCOME OF ONLY RS 40 PER VETERAN PER MONTH GOVT SOURCES ASK WHETHER HOLDING UP OROP OVER RS 40 PER MONTH IS IN NATIONAL INTEREST GOVT SOURCES FEEL THAT IF THE ANNUAL BENEFIT IS ONLY RS 500 THEN THE EX-SERVICEMEN SHOULD BE PRACTICAL AND NOT HOLD UP IMPLEMENTATION OVER SUCH A SMALL FIGURE GOVT SOURCES SAY THE ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSE OF TRYING TO REVISE PENSIONS ANNUALLY IS NOT PRACTICAL TO IMPLEMENT GOVT SOURCES ALSO TELL INDIA TODAY THAT THE AVERAGE PENSION OF A MAJOR GENERAL WILL INCREASE FROM RS 65,000 TO RS 80,000 AFTER IMPLEMENTATION OF OROP THE PENSION OF A RETIRED JAWAN WITH 20 YEARS OF SERVICE WILL INCREASE FROM RS 12,800 TO RS 14,700 ONE RANK ONE PENSION WILL NOW BE CALCULATED AS THE AVERAGE OF THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM SALARY DRAWN BY A SERVICEMEN RETIRING AT A CERTAIN RANK FOR EXAMPLE, JAWANS WHO ARE RETIRING AT PRESENT, DRAW SALARIES IN THREE GRADES -- RS 7200-7400-7600, DEPENDING ON THE NUMBER OF YEARS OF SERVICE AFTER OROP ALL RETIRED JAWANS WILL BE BROUGHT TO THE AVERAGE OF THIS RANK, WHICH WOULD BE RS 7400. THIS IS CALCULATED AS AVERAGE OF THE MINIMUM AND MAXIMUM RANGE OF JAWANS WHO RETIRED RECENTLY GOVT BELIEVES THAT IT NEEDS TO MOVE VERY CAREFUL AND NOT BE SWAYED BY EMOTIONAL CONCERNS AS OTHER GROUPS WILL START MAKING THE SAME DEMANDS AFTER THE NEXT PAY COMMISSION ----EOM---- GOVT'S FINAL ‪#‎OROP‬ PROPOSAL ACCESSED SENIOR GOVT SOURCES OROP WILL BE IMPLENTED FROM 1 JULY 2014 GOVT SAYS OROP ANNOUCEMENT VERY SOON GOVT SENDS THE MESSAGE THAT IT HAS IMPLEMENTED OROP WITHIN ONE MONTH OF COMING TO POWER OROP ARREARS WILL BE DISBURSED IN FOUR HALF YEARLY INSTALMENTS WIDOWS WILL BE PAID OROP ARREARS IN ONE INSTALMENT FINANCIAL YEAR 2013 WILL BE THE BASE YEAR FOR OROP PENSIONS WAR WIDOWS WILL ALSO GET OROP BENEFITS THOSE SOLDIERS WHO TAKE VOLUNTARY RETIREMENT WILL NOT BE ELIGIBLE FOR OROP BENEFITS TO BRING ABOUT UNIFORMITY AMONG RETIRED OFFICERS, PENSION LEVELS WILL BE RECONSIDERED EVERY FIVE YEARS GOVT ESTIMATES THAT RS 10000-12000 CRORE RUPEES WILL BE THE COST OF OROP ARREARS GOVT IS ALSO SETTING UP A ONE MEMBER HIGH LEVEL COMMITTEE TO RESOLVE DISCREPIENCES IN OROP DISBURSEMENT. COMMITTEE WILL SUBMIT ITS REPORT IN SIX MONTHS PREVIOUS GOVERNMENT HAD GIVEN A PROVSION OF ONLY 500 CRORE IN 2014 BUDGET BUT ACTUAL EXPENSE WILL BE RS 8000-10,000 CRORE WHICH WILL INCREASE IN FUTURE