Chandigarh Headlines

Arun Singh adviser to Jaswant
Former minister of state for Defence in the Rajiv Gandhi government, Arun Singh, was today appointed as Special Executive Assistant to External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh. Confirming the appointment, Jaswant Singh said the former minister, whom he has personally known for years, had in the wake of Pakistan8217;s aggression into Indian territory, offered his services to the government to 8220;work in any capacity8221;.

MoD hikes pensions
Six months after it was first done for all civilian government employees, the Ministry of Defence has finally notified a hike in pensions for ex-servicemen who retired before January 1, 1996. Based on this, monthly pensions will immediately go up by around 12 per cent for officers of the rank of captains, and as high as 24 per cent for lieutenant generals. Prior to last month8217;s notification, the pensions of servicemen differed widely, depending on when they retired 8212; with salaries increasing each year, officers who retire later get much higher pensions than those who retired earlier.