Ex-Servicemen-Application of CSS (RP) Rules,2016 to persons re-employed in government service and whose pay is debitable to civil estimates

APPLICATION OF CSS (RP) RULES, 2016 TO PERSONS RE-EMPLOYED IN GOVERNMENT SERVICE AND WHOSE PAY IS DEBITABLE TO CIVIL ESTIMATES

24 January 2018

Sh. Pudi Hari Prasad
Joint Secretary (ESW)
Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare
Ministry of DEfence, Government of India
Room No. 99-A, South, New Delhi – 110011

Subject: APPLICATION OF CSS (RP) RULES, 2016 TO PERSONS RE-EMPLOYED IN GOVERNMENT SERVICE AND WHOSE PAY IS DEBITABLE TO CIVIL ESTIMATES – REG.

Reference: DoPT O.M. No. F.No. 3/3/2016-Estt.(Pay-II) dated 18.10.2017 and our letter to Hon’ble Raksha Mantri dated 04.01.2018.

1. I wish to draw your attention to the plight of re-employed ex-servicemen who joined civil service after rendering invaluable service to the country. Fragmentation of rules and conflict of O.M.s with Central Service Regulations provisions have put them at a disadvantage while getting their initial pay fixed on such civil re-employment. In pursuance of the said Office Memorandum., I have already taken up the matter forcefully in details about the methodology to be adopted in pay fixation of re-employed Ex-servicemen with Hon’ble Raksha Mantri vide above mentioned latter.

2. I personally fell your involvement in the issue will bring a permanent solution for the re-employed ex-servicemen who will get the benefit that is already in the Rule Books but nobody has taken cognizance of it. This issue needs to be addressed holistically and amicably by giving effect to the provisions of CSR by clarifiying impact of minor tweaking of provisions on the lives and sustenance of millions of ex-servicemen, I underline specific reasons in the succeeding paragraphs.

3. Early Retirement of JCOs/OR with Less Pension.
aware, to keep our Armed Forces young, engagement period other Ranks varies from 17 to 32 years. While Sepoy, Naik discharge early, JCOs are eligible to serve upto 52 years age are left with only 8 years to attain the age of 60 years. So, only Sepoy Naik and Havildar rank personnel get more years to serve in the civil side as per following details:-

Rank	Service period	Max Age of Retirement in Armed Forces	Approx Period in Central Govt. on re-employment	Pension as on 31.12.2015 (6th CPC)	Pension as On 01.01.2016 (7th CPC)
Sepoy (Pay Level 3)	17 years	38 years	22 years	6665 *5665	17129 @14559
Nailk (Pay Level-4)	22 years	42 years	18 years	7170 *6170	18427 @15857
Havildar (Pay Level-5)	24 years	46 years	14 years	7795 *6795	20033 @17463
Naib Subedar (Pay Level-6)	26 years	52 years	8 years	10742 *9742	27607 @25037
Subedar (Pay Level-7)	28 years	52 years	8 years	12268 *11268	31529 @28959
Subedar Major (Pay Level 8)	32 years	52 years	8 years	13045 *12045	33526 @30956

*Less MSP of 1000/-, @Less MSP of 2570/-

4. As could be seen from above, in best case scenario, Sepoy, Naik and Havildar at Pay Levels 3 to 5 have maximum number of 22, 18 and 14 years of service in civil side with military pension ranging from Rs.14,000/- to Rs. 17,000/- without components of MSP and 17000/- to Rs 20,000/- with components of MSP. You are also aware that as per DoPT O.M. No. 36034/1/2006-Estt (Res) dated 4th October, 2012, reservation is available for ex-servicemen in Group C posts (10%) and Group D posts (20%) only. Consequently, they could only be employed from pay level 3 to 5 as pay level 1 & 2 belongs to MTS categories. Based on above premise, pay fixation for these ranks (based on the OROP table issued by MoD vide theor O.M. No. 12(1)/2014/D(Pen/Pol) dated 03.02.2016), is covered with relevant aspects in the annexed tables.

5. I have illustrated the above mentioned tables to inform you that if DESW accepts the pay fixation formula proposed by DoPT, it would not only entail less pay that what the ESM are getting without pay fixation but also violate the provisions of statutory Central Services Regulations and directions/decisions of Hon’ble Supreme Court of India. It will open plithora of grievances and litigations with regards to pay fixation, computation of pre-retirement pay, arrears from July 1986 for those whose pay is yet to be fixed.

6. Moreover, re-employed ex-servicemen are not asking for anything new. They are raising concern for overriding the constitutional provisions through the means of executive instructions by DoPT which are not tenable in a court of law like the recent case of MACP on the same Gazette Notification of 6th CPC, dated 30.08.2008. It is, therefore, requested that while forwarding comments to DoPT, Department of Ex-servicemen Welfare may include the suggestions/recommendations given vide our letter to Hon’ble RM dated 04.01.2018, which inter alia states the following:-

(a) Option I – The initial pay, on re-employment shall be fixed at the minimum of the scale of pay prescribed for the post in which the individual is re-employed. After fixing the pay as above, in case the initial pay is lesser than the last pay drawn (pre-retirement pay), such cases are to be treated as causing unduehardship, the pay is to be fixed at a higher stage by granting one increment for each year of service rendered by him, so as to bring the initial pay at par with the pre-retirement pay. The pay so fixed is to be treated as “minimum of the pay scale”. In addition to the above, the government servant is permitted to draw pension and all other forms of retirement benefits including Dearness Relief on Pension to which he is eligible. In other words, revive the 1956 Orders in conjunction with Ministry of Defence O.M. No. 2(1)/83/D(Civ.I) dated 08.02.1983 and Ministry of Finance, Dept.of.Expenditure No. F. 4 (3)-E. III (B)/82 dated 13.12.1983 and Supreme Court of India Judgement dated 08.11.1996 in the B.Ravindran case.

(b) Option-II While 70% of re-employed ex-servicemen are covered in option I, remaining 30% of re-employed ex-servicemen will be covered in Option II if their initial pay shall be fixed in the time scale of the re-employed post at a stage equivalent to the stage that would have been reached by putting in the Civil Posts, the number of completed years of service rendered in the posts in the Armed Forces. The pay so fixed will not be restricted to the ‘pre-retirement pay’. The pension (including pension

A. Sepoy and Equivalent (17 years of service)

Fixation under different provisions	Initial Pay on their Re-Employment in Civil Side
	Pay Level 1	Pay Level 2	Pay Level 3	Pay Level 4	Pay Level 5
Without Pay Fixation Minimum Pay	18000	19900	21700	25500	29200
Pension	*17129	*17129	*17129	*17129	*17129
Total	35129	36029	38829	42629	46329
@DOPT proposal For pay protection	PRP (only  basic) 29000	29000	29000	29000	29000
50% pension	**7280	**7280	**7280	**7280	**7280
Total	36280	36280	36280	36280	36280
Fixation as per CSR(Option-I) By giving increment	17129 2=34258	34258	34258	34258	34258
Pension	*17129	*17129	*17129	*17129	*17129
Total	51387	51387	51387	51387	51387
Fixation as per Option II (Giving 17 increments for 17 years of military service)	28800	32000	35000	41000	46800
Pension (after ignoring 50%)	6665	6665	6665	6665	6665
Total	35465	38665	41665	47665	53465

B.Naik and Equivalent (22 years of service)

Fixation under different provisions	Initial Pay on their Re-Employment in Civil Side
	Pay Level 1	Pay Level 2	Pay Level 3	Pay Level 4	Pay Level 5
Without Pay Fixation Minimum Pay	18000	19900	21700	25500	29200
Pension	*18427	*18427	*18427	*18427	*18427
Total	36427	38327	40127	43927	47627
@DOPT proposal For pay protection	PRP (Only              Basic) 31000	31000	31000	31000	31000
50% pension	1585712=**7929	7929	7929	7929	7929
Total	38929	38929	38929	38929	38929
Fixation as per CSR(Option-I) By giving increment	15857 × 2 =31714 (At Par level of PRP)	31714	31714	31714	31714
Pension	*18427	*18427	*18427	*18427	*18427
Total	50456	50456	50456	50456	50456
Fixation as per Option II (Giving 17 increments for 17 years of military service)	33400	37200	40600	47500	54200
Pension (after ignoring 50%)	7170	7170	7170	7170	7170
Total	40570	44370	47770	54670	61370

C. Havildar and Equivalent (24 years of service)

Fixation under different provisions	Initial Pay on their Re-Employment in Civil Side
	Pay Level 1	Pay Level 2	Pay Level 3	Pay Level 4	Pay Level 5
Without Pay Fixation Minimum Pay	18000	19900	21700	25500	29200
Pension	*20033	*20033	*20033	*20033	*20033
Total	38033	39933	41733	45533	49233
@DOPT proposal For pay protection	PRP (Only              Basic) 34000	34400	34400	34400	34400
50% pension	17463/2=**8732	8732	8732	8732	8732
Total	43132	43132	43132	43132	43132
Fixation as per CSR(Option-I) By giving increment	17463× 2 =34926 (at Par level of PRP)	34926	34926	34926	34926
Pension	*20033	*20033	*20033	*20033	*20033
Total	54959	54959	54959	54959	54959
Fixation as per Option II (Giving 17 increments for 17 years of military service)	35400	39400	43100	50400	57500
Pension (after ignoring 50%)	7795	7795	7795	7795	7795
Total	43195	47195	50895	58195	65295

*Including MSP of 2570/-
**Less MSP
@DoPT Proposal will curtail dearness relief on pension also.

equivalent retirement benefit) may be reduced from the pay so fixed after ignoring an amount of Rs. 15000/- as proposed by DOPT. In addition to the above, the government servant is permitted to draw pension and all other forms of retirements benefits including Dearness Relief on pension which he is eligible. (The anout of ignorable part of pension and PEG for pensioners re-employed prior to 01.01.2016 will remain at Rs. 4000/-). It is evident from the 1962 Orders that the ignorable part of pension for all categories was Rs. 15/-, however, despite the lapse of 54 years, neither DoE nor DoPT has taken care of this aspects and Rs. 15/- is still prevalent as ignorable part of pention for combatant clerks/reservists/store clerks. Since the amount of ignorable part of pension has been increased to Rs. 4,000/- (in 6th CPC) and Rs. 15000/- (in 7th CPC), the same criteria should be evolved as far as the ignorable part of pension is concerned taking into the cognizance of 1962 orders.

(b) Allowing Military Service Pay (MSP) for pay fixation for 6th CPC pensioners as per MoD Gazette Notification dated 30.08.2008 in the spirit of Hon’ble Supreme Court of India Judgement on Civil Appeal No 3744 dated 08 Dec 2017.

(c) Pre-retirement Pay of 6th CPC pensioners should be as given in CSR and DoPT O.M. 31.07.1986.

(d) Payment of Arrears to those re-employed ESM whose pay is yet to be fixed since 31.07.1986.

7. In view of the forgoing you are requested to forward your comments to DoPT as per our above recoomendations to address long pending disparity in the fixation of Pay for re-employed defence pers.
Your personal Indulgence is requested please.

With regards,

Yours Sincerely

Maj Gen Satbir Singh, SM (Retd)
Advisor United Front of Ex Servicemen &
Chairman Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement (IESM)
Mobile: 9312404269, 0124 4110570
Email:satbirsm@gmail.com

Source: http://www.iesm.org