Posted on 21/09/2016 by Dailyexcelsior
Harsha Kakar
The seventh pay commission as announced was unacceptable to the military
and left them simmering due to lowering of their status as compared to
their counterparts from other central services. The absurdity of the pay
commission chief, to justify his actions by aiming to create equality
in all cadres joining through a common exam (civil services exam),
indicated his personal enmity against the military. I wonder if the
learned judge was aware, that the military inducts its officer cadre at a
much younger age, where the competition is equally severe. Further, he
would neither have been briefed (as there was no military
representative), that selection to the military is far more stringent
than other services. The four- day interview has been known to be a
rejection criterion rather than a selection one. It only approves those
select few, with qualities of patriotism and leadership. There are no
quotas allocated to the selection boards. Hence, it is this specially
selected lot, which has sacrificed its life for the nation, countless
times.
I wonder which other service can boast of such intense national pride
and sacrifice. Yet, since independence the military has been
systematically downgraded, which it accepted without a murmur. Even its
pensions, which were initially 70% were brought down in the third pay
commission (1973) to 50%, with a promise of OROP, which remained ignored
for decades. This was an intentional action, as it occurred post
India’s biggest victory over Pakistan and the commission for the first
time, had no military representative. The final release of OROP was
below promised levels, however, the formation of the Reddy commission to
look into the anomalies, has presently quelled fires.
While dissent is acceptable in a democracy, the same may not be said for
the military. Civilian employees agitated against the pay commission
award, to which the government immediately responded positively. A
threat of strike by them, makes the government rush to accept demands.
However, military discipline and ethos does not permit itto resort to
such action. In every case, where it has felt downgraded or affected, it
has voiced its concerns and left the decision makers, which comprise
the polity and bureaucracy to resolve the issue. Thus over the years,
anomalies and disagreements have piled up, with no end in sight. Knowing
that a disciplined force would never resort to any undemocratic means,
they are heard and subsequently ignored.
Further, the pay commission came immediately after the OROP agitation,
which was followedon social media by members of the military, after all
every soldier of today is a potential veteran of tomorrow. 93% of the
military, retires between the ages of 35 to 45,after having sacrificed
their youth for the country and then are ignored and dumped. The
agitation was aimed at protecting future retirees. The subsequent
anomalies and downgrading the status of the military in the pay
commission further impacted the organization. Disgruntlement only
increased and became more visible. The committee of secretaries ordered
by the government to resolve the differences, had no military member,
hence its decision was the final nail in the coffin.
The battle for status involves more than just salary. In fact, salary
has never been the issue. The status impact comes to the fore when the
military functions with different Government agencies in matters
concerning national security and calamities. Its lowered status makes
working with bureaucrats and civil police officials more complicated, as
it alters the rank structure,hence affects coordination and
cooperation. The nation works on status;therefore, a higher status
officer would never cooperate or be willing to work jointly with a
junior from another service. Simultaneously, within the military are
civilian members of other central services. A change in status affects
its organization and working structure.
The glaring anomalies left behind over years of down gradation have made
members of the military, feel like second class citizens serving the
nation. While the head of the pay commission, had clearly shown his
anger and hatred for the military, by degrading them, the Government and
its so-called mature senior bureaucratic leadership did no better. The
words of the Prime Minister praising the military, his spending Diwali
with troops and senior lady ministers tying Rakhi to soldiers in remote
areas, in reality appear to be actions of publicity, rather than genuine
concern.
Never in the history of the country had the service chiefs been
compelled, to openly refuse to accept the recommendations of the pay
commission, but the writing on the wall of dissent across the rank and
file was clear. They realized, that they need to serve whom they
command, rather than their political leaders. Had theyrelented, they
would have been accused of a sell-out, which would remain a blotch, on
their otherwise spectacular career. Hence, such an action was resorted
to. It had to indicate to the political leadership, in clear terms,that
enough damage had been done and it was time to rectify the same.Taking
the silent military for granted and treating them as second class
citizens, had to stop. It also conveyed that concerns are genuine and
unless immediate action is taken, there would be lack of coordination,
when operations are launched jointly. The present is also a challenging
time, as the military battles increased terrorism and supports the
police in restoring normalcy in the Valley even as it faces severe loss
of life as in the recent Uri encounter.
However, a disciplined force always remains one. The message has been
conveyed and Government action awaited. The words of service chiefs are
gospel down the line (unlike any other Government service), hence though
there would remain murmurs, however trust and faith in the system would
be restored. The soldier has to look up the organization tree for
satisfaction and they cannot let him down. It is now upto the defence
and Prime Ministers to prove their genuine concern for the military and
restore its rightful status. If they fail to do so, all their actions so
far, would be viewed by the nation as a publicity stunts and their
promises hollow. The nation is proud of its military and knows it would
never be let down. Therefore, in the ultimate analysis, it is for the
people of India to observe government action in correcting the wrongs
done on the silent and dependable military and decide whether the
present political leadership can be trusted to keep their words. If they
fail to keep their promise, then the nation can reconsider whom to vote
for, in the coming elections.
(The author is retired Major General in Indian Army)
feedbackexcelsior@gmail.com
Chandigarh, September 28
