Centre will take another month to notify OROP implementation

NEW DELHI: The government will take another month or so to notify implementation of one rank, one pension (OROP) for the over 25 lakh ex-servicemen in the country, which has already been rejected as a "diluted and lame scheme" by a section of military veterans.

"It can take 2-4 weeks more easily because it is quite an extensive issue," defence ministry sources said on Wednesday. Asked if the government will wait till the Bihar assembly polls get over, the sources said the OROP announcement had already been made on September 5 and what was now expected was just a formal and detailed notification.

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The veterans, however, are not happy with what defence minister Manohar Parrikar announced on September 5. For one, they want all military personnel who have taken premature retirement (PMR) to come under the ambit of OROP. As reported by TOI earlier, the government plans to keep certain PMR categories out of OROP, which will include personnel who have taken voluntary retirement without being superseded and those penalised with administrative strictures.

Similarly, the veterans want "pension equalization or adjustment" at least once every two years, while the government has announced it will be done only at five-year intervals. The veterans have also objected to the government taking calendar year 2013, instead of financial year 2013-14, as the base year for pension fixation.

The veterans are also opposed to the setting up of a one-man judicial commission to submit its report on OROP implementation in six months. The veterans want a five-member committee, with three of their representatives, to submit its report within a month.