OROP: Veterans may meet PM Narendra Modi next week

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Col Anil Kaul (Retd), Media Adviser to the United Front of Ex-Servicemen, also said the meeting with Modi is on the cards.

“No dates have been fixed so far. It could be between  August 24-26,” he said.

Army Chief Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag had spoken to both Maj Gen Satbir and Lt Gen Balbir Singh (Retd), President of IESM over the OROP issue.

Stepping in to pacify agitating ex-servicemen, Prime Minister’s Office on Tuesday held talks with representatives of the protesters who have agreed not to escalate their agitation for next 10 days.

The meeting with Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Nripendra Misra at the PMO came on a day when a third veteran joined the fast-unto-death at Jantar Mantar here, where the ex-servicemen have been protesting demanding early implementation of OROP.

In a statement issued today, the ex-servicemen said Maj Gen Satbir Singh and Lt Gen Balbir told Misra that if government was serious about the interest of ex-servicemen, it would have initiated action on the two other promises made in manifesto of BJP  – martyrs memorial and establishment of veterans’ commission to be chaired and manned by ex-servicemen.

“Misra was taken by surprise and immediately called Secretary MOD and asked to be briefed soon on both the issues. The meeting ended without any assurance from both sides,” the statement said.

The ex-servicemen have made it clear that their protest will not be called off without a timeline being announced bythe  government for implementation of OROP.

“We have waited for too long. Now we want concrete action. We are not going to be swayed by mere assurances. If nothing is forthcoming from the government in 10 days, we will intensify our stir,” Maj Gen Satbir said.

Modi had on August 15 reiterated his government’s commitment towards the OROP but refrained from giving a time frame on its implementation.

The Centre has maintained that the scheme will be implemented as soon as the technical difficulties are resolved.

On Monday, 10 former Service Chiefs had written to the Prime Minister pressing for expeditious resolution of the OROP issue.

The letter, signed by former Army chiefs V N Sharma, Shankar Roy Choudhary, S Padmanabhan, N C Vij, J J Singh, Deepak Kapoor and Bikram Singh, regretted that Modi did not announce implementation of OROP in his Independence Day address, dashing the hopes of ex-servicemen.

Former Navy chief Admiral Madhvendera Singh and former Air Force chiefs N C Suri and S P Tyagi were also signatories to the letter.

Close to 22 lakh ex-servicemen and over six lakh war widows stand to be immediate beneficiaries of the scheme, which envisages a uniform pension for the defence personnel who retire in the same rank with the same length of service, irrespective of their date of retirement.

Currently, the pension for retired personnel is based on the Pay Commission recommendations of the time when he or she retired. So, a Major General who retired in 1996 draws a lower pension than a Lieutenant Colonel who retired after 1996.