Disability allowance up,PRC cheers

The PRC,which admits service personnel suffering from paraplegia or quadriplegia,called it a great way to express gratitude to brave soldiers who fight for the nation. The ex-gratia was Rs 7,50,000 for officers and Rs 3,75,000 for other ranks so far.

“It is good that the sum has been increased to Rs 9 lakh. The percentage of disability is decided by the government on the basis of a blue book and what would be a welcome step further is inclusion of disability caused due to vehicular accident while one is going to perform the duty,” said Dr (Lt Col) SP Jyoti,director,PRC.

Pune has over 23,621 registered ex-servicemen,15 per cent of whom are estimated to be receiving disability pension. Lt Col (Retd) Shirish Karajgi,district sainik welfare officer,welcomed the move.

The defence personnel in the city are,however,unhappy that no special announcement has been made to boost participation of SMEs in the defence sector or address the ongoing one-rank-one-pension issue.

“There was no mention of ex-servicemen in the budget. Not only that,we are spending much on equipment from abroad,while talking loud about indegenisation. No step has been taken to ensure that indegenisation gets a boost,” said Brigadier (Retd) S B Ghorpade,ex-serviceman and chairman,MCCIA Defence Committee.