Some 30,000-40,000 armed forces officers who were commissioned or retired between 1986 and 1996 are in for a pay arrears and pension bonanza with the Supreme Court upholding a high court ruling that the amounts had been erroneously calculated.
Upholding the Kerala High Court ruling that ‘rank pay’ should be included while calculating an officer’s pay and pension, the Supreme Court has directed this be re-recalculated and paid with retrospective effect from Jan 1, 1986.
‘We also direct interest to be paid thereon at 6 percent per annum,’ a bench of Justice Markendey Katju and Justice R.M. Lodha ruled. The judgment was delivered last week but a copy was made available only Tuesday. The judgment will not apply to officers who were commissioned or retired post-1996 as they are covered under the Fifth and Sixth Pay Commissions.
‘With this judgment, the pay of all affected officers will have to be re-fixed from Jan 1, 1986, with consequential benefits on pay, pension, commutation and leave encashment,’ the Retired Defence Officers Association (RDOA) that pursued the case in the Supreme Court said in a statement.
‘The anticipated arrears would range from a couple of thousand rupees to a few lakh per officer depending upon the rank held and reckonable service of the officer. About 30,000 to 40,000 officers, both serving and retired, including widows, would be directly benefited,’ the statement said.
According to the RDOA, the defence ministry committed a ‘faux paus’ by not including ‘rank pay’ in the total emoluments and then doing the pay fixation, as had been recommended by the Fourth Pay Commission, which presented its final report in 1987.
‘This resulted in huge financial loss to the officers with cumulative effect on pay, DA, pension, gratuity and commutation,’ the association said.
Acting on the plea of Major A.K. Dhanapalan, a single judge bench of the Kerala High Court Oct 5, 1998, directed that the calculations be done afresh. A division bench of the high court upheld this July 4, 2003.
The government appealed against this in the Supreme Court and the RDOA also filed its own plea.
Many similar petitions were filed in various high courts all over the country by other officers as well.
‘These were clubbed together and transferred to the Supreme Court to be heard along with an transfer petition of similar nature that had arisen out of a case that was allowed on the basis of the judgment in Major Dhanapalan’s case,’ RDOA said.
I IC13569, Lt Col K P Sharma retired on 29 OCT 1986 after 24 yrs .I have submitted all the necessary docs to PCDA(o) but no reply from them even after two months. When are we likely to get the news about our arrears?
Sir.Many ofrrs. have received their arrears
of rank pay have received.I have received
no info.Info pl.
Retd 2003, recd no arrears so far. Am I to send some form filled to Pcdap ? kindly advise.
As per SC ruling, arrears were to be paid within 12 weeks from sep 2012.
Pl contact the following fror the RDOA membership:
Col Satwant Singh -+919818039172
Cdr Narinder S Chauhan : +919313133209
hello sir mera naam rajshekar hai mere papa expired hai mataji hai. mere papa 1990 me retired hai 15 saal ka service kiya hai signal man the kya unko arriers mil saktha hai. mil saktha hai tho kaab mil saktha hai please jankari dijiye sir. thank you.
I was promoted as Lt Col time scale after 24 year service on 15 oct 1985(Lt Col Substantive Rank).I have been shown being paid a major rank pay NOT a Lt Col.I also fail to understand the logic of weight -age given to a Major(8 Years),Lt Col (7 years), Lt Col (TS)(5 years) .What is the logic i have not been able to understand.What will be my pay as on 1.1.86,1.1.96,1.1.06.
Sir a good number of exam like me joined sbi in 2009. We our pay is not protected in PSU’s and we
name it as fitment and accordingly all the components as per 6cpc is considered and paid by all the banks also by other circles of sbi except sbi Bengal Hq. In addition they’re insisting on ceasing dearness relief on pension during the period of re_employment. Sir is it correct? DR with pension is being paid everywhere in India. We have all the relevant circulars/authority but sbi Bengal circle is adamant in our case. Pls guide us.
Thanking you in anticipation.
please give the site to download the form for claiming arrears post 1986.
I am a widow od ex-servicemen IAf,my husband has put 9 yrs bond and 1 yr of emergency service.please guide me about the amount of pension i should recive for the served period.i have never applied for pension before as i am not aware of the procedure.please also let me know if there is any legal aid available for the dependants of the ex servicemen? please advice.
what is the status of my revised pension and arrears to be paid by PCDA(Pension ),Allahabad