Friday 20 September 2013

Minimum Pay and Parity with DIG? Chapter 2.3. Sixth Central Pay Commission Report



                    Chapter 2.3 of Sixth Central Pay Commission Report


Pay scales of Defence Forces Personnel

(Pages 72 to 75 reproduced below)

(Please note from the tables,  wherever there is Rank Pay an amount equal to rank pay has been deducted for officers in ranks from Captain to Brigadiers)

Introduction 2.3.1. The first two Pay Commissions did not consider the pay scales, allowances and other service conditions of Defence Forces personnel. At that time, the structure of emoluments of the Defence Forces personnel was looked into by the departmental committees which included the representatives of the three services.

Post-war Pay Committee

2.3.2. After the First Pay Commission, a Post War Pay Committee was constituted for the Defence Forces personnel. Their recommendations were implemented from 1/7/1947. The
Committee simplified the pay structure of the Defence Forces personnel considerably and abolished a number of allowances which had either relevance only to war conditions or which could be merged with the pay. The Committee established a broad relativity of officers of Defence Forces with the officers of Class-I central services and the Indian Police Service (IPS). Insofar as Personnel Below Officer Ranks (PBORs) were concerned, the fully trained infantry solider with 3 years service was equated with a semi-skilled worker. Pension related issues of the Defence Forces were considered subsequently by the Defence Forces Pension Revision Committee constituted in 1949 which gave its report in 1950.

Raghuramaiya Committee

2.3.3. Subsequent to the report of the Second Pay Commission, the consequential changes for Defence Forces personnel were effected as per the recommendations made by the Raghuramaiah Committee that gave its report in 1960. The revisions made by this Committee were consequential in nature and broadly followed the revisions made by the Second CPC on the civil side. The Committee did not modify any of the principles followed by the Post War Pay Committee. The Raghuramaiya Committee specifically mentioned that the accepted parallel between defence service officers and Class-I services of the Central Government, particularly the Indian Police Service should be continued.

Subsequent developments

2.3.4. Subsequently, the parity of officers’ pay scale in Defence Forces vis-à-vis that of the IPS got cemented further and modifications in the IPS scales became a trigger for corresponding changes in the analogous grade in the Defence Forces.
Chapter 2.3
Third Pay Commission

2.3.5. The Third Pay Commission was the first Commission whose terms of reference included examination of the structure of emoluments, the retirement benefits and terms and conditions of the Defence Forces personnel. The Commission noted that the relativity of the officers in Defence Forces vis-à-vis IPS was only a working method of devising scales of pay for the service officers* which did not mean that the functional role of the two services were similar. (* emphasis by Aerial View)

The Commission, however, qualified this statement by mentioning that the job profile of IPS officers was the closest civilian analogue vis-à-vis infantry officers and that a working relationship did exist between the two organizations. The Commission also specifically noted that the pay structure of the Indian Administrative Service with its long pay scales was particularly unsuitable for service officers.*

Disturbance Allowance and the edge in Defence Forces pay scales

2.3.6. The Defence Forces had demanded a higher rate of Special Disturbance Allowance from the Third Pay Commission. The Commission, however, noted that the Disturbance Allowance was granted in 1950 as a temporary measure to improve the earnings of service officers without interfering with the pay scales introduced as per the recommendations of the Post War Pay Committee which had brought down the pay scales of many Indian Commissioned Officers (ICOs). At such time, the grant of Disturbance Allowance offered some relief to them.* The Third Pay Commission noted that the extent of turbulence was off-set by the special facilities given to Defence Forces personnel and no justification existed for continuance of the Special Disturbance Allowance as a separate entity. The Commission, however, did not recommend total abolition of this allowance as it had existed for a long time and instead merged this allowance with the pay scales of Defence Forces officers. Hence, the Third CPC pay scales of Defence Forces officers also contained an element of Special Disturbance Allowance which had hitherto been given as a separate allowance. On account of this fact, post-Third CPC, the pay scales of Defence Forces officers had a slight edge vis-à-vis the analogous posts in the civilian side.

Fourth CPC

2.3.7. The Fourth CPC, while devising the revised pay scales of Defence Forces officers took into note the proposal seeking running pay bands put forth by the Defence Forces. The Defence Forces had desired a running pay band so as to ensure a smooth and improved career progression which otherwise was not possible especially as any large scale cadre review in the Defence Forces would have created unacceptable aberrations in their hierarchical structure.

The Fourth Pay Commission, accordingly, recommended an integrated pay scale for all officers upto the rank of Brigadier and equivalent in three services and separately gave a rank pay ranging from Rs.200 to Rs.1200 p.m. for posts from Captain/equivalent to Brigadier/equivalent. During such time, the Defence Forces had desired inclusion of the officers in the rank of Major General also in the proposed integrated pay scale. This was, however, not found acceptable by the Fourth CPC who, therefore, placed Major Generals
in the pay scale of Rs.5900-6700 being the senior administrative pay scale (SAG) for civilians.

Fifth CPC

 2.3.8. The Fifth CPC took note of the fact that the Special Disturbance Allowance had been incorporated by the Third CPC in the pay scales of Defence Forces officers. The Commission, accordingly, recommended a similar edge in the starting pay of Lieutenant (the rank of 2nd Lieutenant having been recommended to be abolished by the Commission) who was, therefore, given the starting pay of Rs.8250 as against Rs.8000 recommended for a civilian Group A officer. Before the Fifth CPC, the Defence Forces
had proposed two running pay bands for Defence Forces officers – (i) till the post of Colonel; and (ii) from Brigadier to Lt. General. The Fifth CPC, however, concluded that a separate dispensation for Defence Forces in the form of running pay bands would have repercussions on civilian employees and that the better method would be to provide explicit compensation in regular pay scales. The Commission, accordingly, recommended abolition of integrated pay scales by regular pay scales with progression in pay being provided by the mechanism of ACP Scheme. The Fifth CPC, however, retained the concept of rank pay for officers till the post of Brigadier. The pay scale of Major General/equivalent was recommended as Rs.18400-22400 on par with SAG scale of civilians.

Relativity between Defence Forces and civilian officers established by the earlier Pay Commissions

2.3.9. The relativity existing between pay scales of analogous posts in the Defence Forces and the civilians since the time of Third Central Pay Commission is tabulated as follows:

Third CPC recommendations (in Rs.)

Civilian
Defence Forces*

Grade                                Pay Scale
Grade                      Pay Scale

JTS                                      700-1300
2nd Lieut.                    750-790
Lieut.                             830-950

STS                                   1100-1600
Capt.                          1020-1450
Major                         1350-1750

JAG                                   1200-2000

Lt. Col. (Acting)        1500-1900
Lt. Col. (Subs.)          1700-1900
Lt. Col. (TS)               1800 (Fixed)

NFSG                               2000-2250
Colonel                        1950-75-2175

DIG                                  2250-2500
Brig.                           2200-100-2400

SAG I                               2500-2750
Major General              2500-2750

HAG                                 3000 Fixed
Lt. General                       3000 (Fixed)

Secretary                             3500
Fixed General                    3500 (Fixed)


 Service Chiefs                   4000 (Fixed)


*(The pay scales in Navy were slightly different.)

Fourth CPC recommendations
Civilian
Defence Forces

Grade                          Pay  Scale (Rs.)

Grade                                 Pay Scale (Rs.)

JTS                                       2200-4000
STS                                      3000-4500
JAG                                     3700-5000
NFSG                                 4500-5700
DIG                                      5100-5700
                                             (Revised to
                                             5100-6150)









SAG                                  5900-6700

HAG                                7600 (fixed)

Secretary                        8000 (fixed)

Cab. Secy.                      9000 (fixed)


2nd Lieut. to Brig.      2300-100-4200-
                                       EB-100-5000
                           (Integrated pay scale)                                                (Revised to
                                                  2300-5100)
Rank                       Amount of rank pay
                                               (p.m.)
Capt. & equ.                 200
Major & equ.                400
Lt. Col. (Sel. & equ.)    600
Col. & equ.                    800
Brig. & equ.                 1200


Pay scales for higher levels

Maj. Gen. & equ.           5900-200-6700

Lt. Gen.                          7600 (fixed)

Army Comm.               8000 (fixed)

Service Chiefs              9000 (fixed)




Fifth CPC recommendations

Civilian
Defence Forces

Grade                               Pay Scale (Rs.)

Grade                 Pay Scale        Rank pay
                                   (Rs.)                  (p.m.)

JTS                                     8000-13500

Lieut.                  8250-10050
Capt.                    9600-11400                 400

STS                                     10000-15200
Maj.                     11600-14850              1200

JAG                                    12000-16500
Lt. Col.               13500-17100                1600

NFSG                                 14300-18300
Col.                       15100-17350             2000

DIG                               16400-20000
Brig.                     15350-17600              2400

SAG                                   18400-22400
Maj. Gen.            18400-22400

HAG                                  22400-24500
Lt. Gen. & equ. 22400-24500

Secretary                                26000
(fixed)

Vice Chiefs and Army Comm.
Equivalent                      26000 (fixed)
Cab. Secy.                                 30000
                                                   (fixed)

Service Chiefs               30000 (fixed)
Analysis

 2.3.10. The following facts emerge from the history of the rank structure of officers in the Defence Forces:-

(i) A broad parity has always existed between the pay scales of Defence Forces officers and civilian group A services in general and with IPS in particular.

(ii) Special Disturbance Allowance was given to the Defence Forces officers in 1950 as a temporary measure to improve their earnings without interfering with the pay scales introduced as per the recommendations of the Post War Pay Committee which had brought down the pay scales of many Indian Commissioned Officers (ICOs).

(iii) An edge was provided by the Third CPC in the Defence Forces officer’s pay scales because the Commission had converted the then existing Special Disturbance Allowance into an edge in starting pay vis-à-vis the civilian group A officers.

(iv) The Fourth CPC had continued this edge in devising the running pay band for Defence Forces officers up to the rank of Brigadier and had revised the integrated pay scale taking in account the time taken for promotion to different pay scales. The element of rank pay was carved out of the pay scales so revised after giving the edge vis-à-vis civilian group A officers.

(v) The Fifth CPC maintained this edge even though it reverted from running pay bands to individual pay scales for various officers’ ranks in the Defence Forces.

(vi) The edge in the Defence Forces pay scales for their officers is on account of the Special Disturbance Allowance. Otherwise, the established relativity of the posts of Major General and Brigadier is with SAG and DIG pay scales of civilians/police forces respectively.

(vii) The Defence Forces had sought running pay band upto the post of Major General before the Fourth CPC. The Commission, however, conceded the running pay band only upto the post of Brigadier/equivalent.

(viii) The Fifth CPC had not recommended running pay in Defence Forces on account of the repercussions it would have had on civilian pay scales.

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