Sunday 6 September 2015

It is Really OROP? A Different View



Is It  One Rank One Pension (OROP), Or is it Commitment Regurgitated Average Pension (CRAP)


Govt’s Announcement
Comment
Opening remarks including reading out the definition of OROP from the MoD's ID dated 26th February 2014 &

42 years old commitment, definition, UPA earmarked Rs 500 crore, BJP has set aside Rs 10, 000 crore to Rs 12000 crore
 The definition is as was decided in a meeting convened by UPA’s RM on 26th February 2014 and conveyed to Shri Rajeev Chandrasekar in MoD ID No. 12 (01)/2014-D(Pen/Pol).

It befits politics to state that UPA made a joke of OROP by setting aside Rs 500 crore, but the NDA’s RM-cum-FM made it a bigger joke by adding Rs 1000 crore as against a requirement of approx Rs. 8300 crore.      
Review Every 5 years
NFU and consequently Grade Pay is revised for lakhs of Civilian Govt Officers annually so that their pensions are not affected.

Is the Govt ready to accept that ESM who reach the top of the pension table will continue to get that for whatever period till the next 5 years review? Isn’t that a loss to the State?

What happens to some one who retires on 30 June with 30 years of service and another retires on 31 July with 30 years? Does the former wait for the next 5 yearly review?  
Effective date 01 Jul 2014
Arrears – 4 half yearly instalments; widows imm 
By taking an average it become One Rank Average Pension;
Calendar year 2013
Does it mean 31 Dec 2013; but what about the reiteration of the definition and date repeated by Shri Parrikar at the beginning of his announcement, which is the same as what UPA Govt stated on 26 Feb 2014 vide MoD   No. 12 (01)/2014-D(Pen/Pol)
PR (VRS) not entitled
First the Defence Services Regulations – Army Pension Rules 2008 Chapter VII

Sec 5: - Pension after PR is obviously Service pension because there is also retirement pension, which obviously means pension on retirement;
  
Sec 9 (b) states pension can be withheld, suspended or discontinued only under conditions

(i) Offences against the State during the period of service, including service rendered upon re-employment after retirement, as listed in Chapter-VI of the Indian Penal Code. Relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code are reproduced below.

(1) Waging or attempting to wage war or abetting waging of war against the Government of India;

(2) Conspiracy to commit offence punishable by section 121 I.P.C.

(3) Collecting arms etc. with intention of waging war against the Government
of India.

(4) Concealing with intent to facilitate design to wage war.

(5) Assaulting President, Governor etc. with intent to compel or restrain the exercise of any lawful power.

(6) Sedition.

(7) Waging war against any Asiatic power in alliance with the Government of
India.

(8) Committing depredation on territories of powers at peace with the Government of India.

(9) Receiving property taken by war or depredation mentioned in sections 125 and 126 Indian Penal Code.

(10) Public servant voluntarily allowing prisoner of State of war to escape.

(11) Public servant negligently allowing such prisoner to escape.

(12) Aiding escape of, rescuing or harbouring such prisoner.

(ii) Other serious crimes under Indian Penal Code, Official Secrets Act or any other special law of the land and grave misconduct; as defined in Notes to Regulation 8 of these Regulations.

(iii) To recover the whole or part of any pecuniary loss caused to the Government in cases where in any departmental or judicial proceedings, the pensioner/individual is found guilty of misconduct or negligence committed during the period of service including service rendered on re-employment after retirement/discharge, leading to the said loss;

(iv)Unauthorized by continuing to occupy the residential accommodation including
hired one provided by the Government;

(v) When a report is received after sanctioning the pension, that departmental or judicial proceedings (for the offences committed while in service or during the period of re-employment) are in progress against the individual;

(vi)When an individual obtains re-employment after retirement without obtaining Govt permission
No ORAP for PR
Next by doing so about 45% to 50% of ESM will not be covered.

Then it leaves out all the cases ORAP will be only for superannuated cases below average in rank and length of service.

By average pension about 20% who are already drawing higher pension will not get even ORAP
The outgo will be about Rs 2000 to Rs 3000 crore and not Rs 8269 crores. 
One member judicial committee
Farcical because Cab Sec Committee of a phalanx of Secretaries could only recommend in Aug 2012 sending the OROP to the 7th CPC; yet … one member and 6 months!!!  

I was on CNN IBN at 7 and reiterated these view in a more succinct manner.

Can’t find the video? Please assist.

6 comments:

  1. SIR.... it seems the so called OROP announced by DM and presented in press conference on 05/09/2015 has nothing to do with 42YRS LONG PENDING DEMAND OF ONE RANK ONE PENSION.
    this is very disgusting and insulting affair for defense personal.
    it looks like DM reading out in hurry the wording drafted by RSS AND AS IF INSTRUCTED BY RSS TO BJP TO SETTLE THE ISSUE BEFORE BIHAR ELECTIONS AS FACE SAVING TECHNIQUE.
    so it is yet another chunavi JUMLA.and on top of it just see how bjp and congress party is claiming credit for it.....

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sit, "...it become One Rank Average Pension;" says it all. I feel that is going to be the biggest diluting agent for OROP introduced through the kind of insidious clauses in MOD orders that we have come to associate with certain quarters. They used the words "..as the average of minimum and maximum pension in 2013.." That means the pension that was paid to a retiree who retired before Jan 06 would be included for calculating the mean or average. That could make OROP totally meaningless. http://bit.ly/1UuupoI.

    You could consider highlighting that issue a little more prominently as the other issues of PR (now almost resolved) and period of review would pale into insignificance compared to this.

    ReplyDelete
  3. It is jumla &fantasha (tamasha , finnger touch error -even that is expressive )of OROP.
    This is the Govt intended order after 42 yrs of inaction and,18 months of working on promises & working on technicalities.
    A bureaucrat drafted and 3 chiefs were seated and RM - read the draft.
    We're chiefs party / part of that drafting! did they project their advise or views ,if any to RM.???
    Look at that entry of VRS in the script - a totally out of context and unrelated to mily pen. VRS&golden hand shake so far applied to public sector & private industry, where in the employees were paid salary for remaining yrs of svc in add to ret benefits.
    This thinking /mindset /intention of dirty tricks are visible.
    Now every body is in spin to resolve new set of anomalies.
    How long???
    AWAKE. !



    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. @bala: I have a deep suspicion that those in uniform just sat back after politely stating their views as the others proceeded to get mud on faces of the political class by acting out of their usual hubris and trying to be one up. We may not come to know, but some folks might have got an earful for having pushed that VRS nonsense into the statement that no one less than Hon'ble PM had to retract today. I don't know if heads will roll for this goof up, but they could. They certainly should.

      Delete
  4. They must have defineteley taken into consideration , the outlay including that of PMR personnel. Otherwise the projected figure would cross 15000 crores or more per year and not 8 to 10 thousand crores.as stated.by the DM.
    The inclusion of the VRS clause was a last minute effort of somebody without realising its impact and reaction.Definetely the person who included it should be punished , as it made the DM look bad.
    Anyways I wonder when the tables will start rolling out.
    Once again all of us must thank the PM and DM for giving us OROP.
    The other issues can be sorted out in due course.
    Ramani

    ReplyDelete
  5. A sort of partial clarification, yet another trick - VRS is known as voluntary retirement scheme . the draft simply read as VRS .Now they say, voluntary retirement from service.
    It is worse than that as on 1.1.86 & wef 1.1.86 - carried on with delay of 5 years to sort out.
    Therefore,united esm response is well measured ,to continue with agitation ,after thanking PM ,appropriately.

    ReplyDelete