Rejecting the objections of ex-servicemen on the implementation of One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Monday said the “core issue” has been addressed and “all demands cannot be met”.
Further issues raised by the veterans will be looked into by the judicial commission to be set up soon.
"This is democracy. Everyone has the right to demand. But the maximum... their main demand for same pension for same rank has been given. Rest is everything that we had declared [on September 5]. Out of that, the confusion about VRS has been removed," Mr. Parrikar said after inaugurating the Central Data Centre, Army Cloud and Digi-Locker at the Army Headquarters as part of the Digital Army programme.
The government issued the notification for implementing OROP on Saturday but was outright rejected by the veterans. It also created confusion among serving officers as it makes a distinction between those already retired and those who opt for Pre-Mature Retirement (PMR) in future. “Personnel who opt to get discharged henceforth on their own request… will not be entitled to the benefits of OROP. It will be effective prospectively,” the notification said.
Meanwhile, Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha called on the protesting veterans to end their agitation. "The government has given directions on the issue and we should accept it. If there are any anomalies which are still persisting, those could be sorted out in due course of time," he said.
