Veterans to boycott President’s tea over OROP

NEW DELHI: A section of agitating ex-servicemen on Friday said it would boycott the "high tea" being organized next week by President Pranab Mukherjee to felicitate the 1965 war veterans, even as they wrote to defence minister Manohar Parrikar in protest against the "serious shortcomings" in the "diluted" one rank, one pension (OROP) announced on September 5. "The government has approved OROP but with so many riders that the OROP definition has been completely destroyed and has lost all its significance. What is the use of soldiers attending an event being organized for their honour even when their legitimate demands have not been met," United Front of Ex-Servicemen (UFESM) media advisor Colonel (retd) Anil Kaul said. READ ALSO: OROP: Frequency of pension revision remains sticking point Under UFESM, the umbrella organisation spearheading the OROP agitation for the last three months, many veterans have already boycotted all official events being organized to commemorate the golden jubilee of the 1965 Indo-Pak war. In his regret letter to Rashtrapati Bhavan for the high tea on September 22, Wing Commander (retd) Vinod Nebb said, "I look towards you as our supreme commander of the armed forces to ask why are you silent? Why would you invite me to an event, which to us veterans is symbolic of our blood, sweat and dignity and play to the government's 'show' of respect to us and our achievement." UFESM leader Major-General (retd) Satbir Singh told Parrikar that the announced OROP scheme had "serious shortcomings". If not corrected, it will not only dilute OROP but also destroy its approved definition, he said. The veterans want that all military personnel who have taken premature retirement (PMR) should come under the ambit of OROP. As reported by TOI earlier, the government plans to keep certain PMR categories out of OROP, which will include personnel who have taken voluntary retirement without being superseded and those penalised with administrative strictures. Similarly, the veterans want "pension equalization or adjustment" at least once every two years, while the government has announced it will be done only at five-year intervals. The veterans have also objected to the government taking calendar year 2013, instead of financial year 2013-14, as the base year for pension fixation. "The defence minister had also earlier assured us that pensions would be taken from the top of the pay scales, but now the government seems to have gone to an unknown concept," said Maj-Gen Singh. As per the government, the pensions will be "re-fixed for all retiring in same rank with same length of service as the average of minimum and maximum pension in 2013". The veterans are also opposed to the setting up of a one-man judicial commission to submit its report on OROP implementation in six months. The veterans want a five-member committee, with three of their representatives, to submit its report within a month.