Citing medical and financial liabilities, Territorial Army orders pruning of ecological battalions

Consequently, several ETF personnel have filed petitions in the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT), challenging the DGTA order. As many as 58 personnel of 133 Infantry Battalion (TA) Eco Dogra, located in Kufri, Himachal Pradesh, have filed a case in AFT Chandigarh against the alleged arbitrary policy/discharge order issued by DGTA.

The personnel have contended that the new DGTA policy letter violated the terms and conditions under which they had been employed by the Territorial Army and that the letter wrongly implements the new orders with retrospective effect.

The ETF units were raised to carry out plantation and ecological restoration as part of nation-building and employed ex-servicemen. The funding for these task forces was provided by central government ministries or state governments, depending upon the task allotted to the battalions.

The DGTA letter states that as per guidelines of ETF battalions, no pension or gratuity is authorised to ETF personnel and they are to be enrolled for a period of two years and thereafter considered for extension of service by one year at a time, based on performance evaluation. This arrangement is sought to be done to discharge all personnel without pension and gratuity, in order to keep operating costs low.

“However, analysis of data with respect to age/service profile of enrolled individuals received through reports and return from ETFs reveals serious lapses wherein individuals have been continuously embodied for larger length of service. Resultantly, individuals are/will become pensionable and/or get lifelong medical disorders which would in both cases be an additional financial liability on MoD,” the DGTA letter states.

The letter further points out that this is in contravention of the spirit of the guidelines that do not provide for pension and gratuity to ETF personnel at all.

The DGTA, thus, ordered all ETF battalions to streamline these “multiple health, employment and financial defaults”, and immediately undertake BOO for the current year to ensure a younger profile of units.

“Further, it is directed that extension of service beyond four years of ETF personnel enrolled in these units (if any) will be on exceptional specific capabilities which would need to be elaborated upon by Company Commanders and Commanding Officers during conduct of BOO,” the letter says.

It adds that no ETF personnel over four years of embodied service is retained by the BOO and all such personnel are to be discharged from service on approval of board proceedings.