Former Short Service Commission officers address mediapersons in Chandigarh on Wednesday. Manoj Mahajan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 8

Former Short Service Commission (SSC) officers today reiterated their demand for grant of pro-rata pension as well as facilities for medical treatment on similar lines as are being given to regular defence service officers.

Speaking to mediapersons here today, several released SSC officers said they had met the Defence Minister as well as the Chief of Army Staff several times in this regard, but even after many years their efforts had gone in vain.

The SSC officers said the provision of medical treatment in military hospitals was arbitrarily withdrawn in 2009. Though the Chandigarh Bench of the Armed Forces Tribunal directed the Ministry of Defence in 2010 to restore the facilities, the order has been challenged before the Supreme Court, where it is still pending.

Demanding that the status of ex-servicemen be granted to released SSC officers, they said they also lost out other benefits such as reservation for their wards in admission to educational institutes and resettlement schemes.

They averred that If this discrimination continues, it may have an adverse impact on talented youth getting attracted to SSC, which is the need of the hour to cover up a big shortage of officers in Armed Forces.