Former army chief Shankar Roychowdhury welcomes Centre's decision on OROP

KOLKATA: Welcoming Centre's decision to implement the long-standing demand for ' One Rank One Pension' for ex-servicemen, former Army chief General Shankar Roychowdhury described it as a "huge step forward".

"It's a very good thing that has happened. It's a huge step forward that was long overdue," General Roychowdhury said.

About disagreements between the Centre and the agitating ex-servicemen over the review of the pension after every five years and excluding ex-servicemen who had opted for pre-mature retirement, Roychowdhury said, "I presume and I hopefully believe that both will sort it out over a mutual discussion that will benefit both the ex-servicemen and their families."

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar announced that the government would implement OROP under which pension would be revised every five years against two years demanded by the ex-servicemen.