The Hindu : National : Life expectancy of soldiers low: study

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Thursday, Dec 29, 2005

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National

Life expectancy of soldiers low: study

Sandeep Dikshit

NEW DELHI: Soldiers die early after they hang up their boots compared to government servants who retire later and live longer, according to a study conducted by a retired general. The finding has led the Army to order an official study of the phenomenon.

The death of two course mates prompted Maj. Gen. (retd.) Surjit Singh to study the life expectancy rate of soldiers. He found that the average life span of former soldiers was 58 years compared to 78 of retired government servants. Gen. Singh's association with two pay commissions and experience in handling manpower planning in the Army might have aided his study, which led to the "striking revelation" that the combat soldier who retired early was also the youngest to die compared with superannuated government servants.

Relationship

According to Gen. Singh, the Army is the only government service in which promotion to higher ranks has a simultaneous effect on the length of service. Thus, when a soldier does not qualify for the next rank, he foregoes the right to serve for a longer period.

"My study shows that retirement age has a relationship with longevity. A lot of it has to do with the rapid fall in living standards when a foot soldier retires, typically between 37 and 43 years of age. At the age, most of them have a growing up family, no job and a measly pension." he said, making a strong case for one-rank-one-pension to avert the sharp fall in dietary and other living requirements when a soldier hangs up his boots.

"He has seen the good days. The drop in standards and the increasing burden of looking after the family kills him when he sees how the good days have dropped after his leaving the Army."

According to the study, forwarded to Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, a retired Army man lives less with drop in rank. Senior officers live up to 72 years, the average age of junior officers is 67 and that of a soldier from the engineering battalion is 63.

The infantry soldier, who does the actual fighting, has the lowest life expectancy rate at 59. He also retires the earliest. The study is based on a survey of 6,000 retired Army men from Hyderabad and Gurgaon, besides those who served with engineering units, Gen. Singh's parent regiment.

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