Defence Forces reject revised salaries

The Defence Forces on Friday did not submit their revised salary bills to the ministry's accounts office, effectively deferring implementation of the 6th Pay Commission report "with the existing anomalies" that affect personnel across all ranks.

The Defence Forces on Friday did not submit their revised salary bills to the ministry8217;s accounts office, effectively deferring implementation of the 6th Pay Commission report 8220;with the existing anomalies8221; that affect personnel across all ranks.

8220;The Armed Forces have not raised their pay vouchers in the revised scales in accordance with the 6th Central Pay Commission CPC notification and have submitted bills in the old pay scales,8221; a Defence Ministry source said.

Though the government on Thursday had in principle accepted the Services8217; demand for restoring 70 per cent 8220;extant pensionary weightage8221; to jawans on the basis of their last drawn pay, the Armed Forces are cut up with the Finance Ministry over the rejection of their three other demands concerning officers.

The CPC had recommended that the jawans be given 50 per cent 8220;pensionary weightage8221; and provided an option of lateral entry into paramilitary and central police forces.

The Armed Forces wanted the lateral entry scheme to be first approved and implemented by the government before the CPC recommendation on the 50 per cent 8220;pensionary weightage8221; came into effect.

8220;We have accepted salaries this month under the old pay scales, as we expect the government to take a quick decision on all our demands soon after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh returns from his US visit on October 1,8221; an Armed Forces officer said.

This, in effect, would mean that over 50 lakh civilian government employees will take home higher pay packets along with the arrears announced in the CPC this month and the 13-lakh-strong Armed Forces personnel would reconcile with the old salaries, to send a strong message to the government.

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Defence Minister A K Antony and the three Services chiefs have already represented to the Prime Minister on the four 8220;core issues8221; they have with the CPC notification.

Navy chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta and Army chief General Deepak Kapoor met Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar and PMO officials yesterday to apprise him of the 8220;anger8221; among the 70,000 officers over their demands not finding favour with the bureaucracy.

They have also requested the country8217;s top political leadership to decide on their CPC demands and to implement the pay commission notification in abeyance till the issues were resolved.

8220;It is just a matter of less than Rs 450 crore annually if the government accepts the four demands of the Armed Forces, which is not a huge burden on the exchequer,8221; an officer said.

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Among the other demands were placing Lt Colonels and their equivalents in the Navy and Air Force under Pay Band-4 instead of Pay Band-3, Grade Pay to officers from Captain to Brigadiers on par with their civilian counterparts, and placing Lt Generals in the Higher Administrative Grade HAG Plus pay scales as the Director Generals of paramilitary and police forces.