New Delhi: In a what will be a major win for the almost three-million strong ex-servicemen and war widows, Prime Minister Narendra Modi may announce implementation of the long delayed One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme on August 15 when India celebrates its 68th Independence Day, said reports.
The ex-servicemen, who have been protesting against the delay in the implementation of the scheme, said they will wait till August 15 for the announcement and if the government does not heed to their demands, they will step up their protests.
One Rank One Pension scheme has been a long-standing demand of nearly three-million ex-servicemen and war widows in the country. It seeks to ensure that a uniform pension is paid to defence personnel who retire at the same rank with the same length of service, irrespective of their date of retirement.
Reaching out to ex-servicemen, Modi had during a Lok Sabha election rally in early 2014 had said, "If Atal Bihari Vajpayee had come to power in 2004 then the One Rank One Pension problem wouldn't have come up. He would have given retired defence officials and serving personnel the means to live with dignity."
But even more than a year after he assumed power on May 26, 2014, the promise remains unfulfilled.
While visiting Army jawans in Siachen on October 23, 2014, Modi had said, "The promise of OROP has been fulfilled. We want all our defence personnel to live with dignity."
Despite the Prime Minister's assurances, the scheme continues to elude ex-servicemen.
Social activist Anna Hazare, who is himself a former Armyman, has already announced launching an indefinite fast on October 2 in Delhi over the Land Bill and to press for OROP.
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