As per recommendations of the Seventh Pay Commission (SPC) on allowances approved by the government, military officers in peace stations have stopped receiving daily rations. Instead they will get a Ration Money Allowance (RMA) which will be fixed after factoring in the Consumer Price Index.
“Provision of free ration for officers of defence forces shall be discontinued in peace areas. RMA shall continue to be paid to officers of defence forces posted in peace areas. The cash shall be credited directly into the bank accounts of officers,” the gazette notification issued by the government on allowances said.
Panel recommendation
The RMA is expected to be notified shortly, sources said. The SPC had recommended that the “provision of free rations and the grant of RMA to officers of defence forces posted in peace areas should be withdrawn”.
However, the government has rationalised that and retained the allowance.
The rations consists of various food items like vegetables, fruits, butter, milk and sugar, etc. based on the recommended dietary intake as fixed. This move is expected to reduce the administrative and logistical load on the Army Service Corps and equivalent establishments and help in better manpower optimisation.
“In the past, military cantonments were far away from cities, so it made sense to have daily ration. But now, most cantonments are in cities. So what is the need for delivering them? This will help better utilise the officers put on this for other duties,” an officer said.
