KV Prasad

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 8

Aimed at eradicating black money and corruption in the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today announced that Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes ceased to be legal tender from November 8 midnight. The Reserve Bank of India would issue new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes in due course, he said in an emergency address to the nation, that was preceded by a meeting with top Cabinet Ministers, including the Home Minister and the Finance Minister and the National Security Adviser.The last time India undertook such a measure was during the Janata Party government of Morarji Desai which did away with the Rs 1,000 note. It took at least two decades for the government to re-introduce currency of a higher denomination.For those who have earned money legally, the old notes can be deposited in banks between November 10 and December 30 by producing PAN, Aadhaar or voter card. The money can then be withdrawn. The banks will limit the withdrawal transactions to Rs 10,000 per day and Rs 20,000 per week. The ATM withdrawal limit will be Rs 2,000. Banks will be closed tomorrow while ATMs will not function for two days. The old notes can also be converted through post offices and sub-post offices during the 50-day period.   On humanitarian grounds, the old notes will be accepted in hospitals, by the airlines and road and rail transport till November 11. Essential facilities, including crematoriums, will accept the old notes till the next three days.The PM said when his government came to power, the country’s economy was floundering and now it was being seen as a bright spot by international institutions, including the International Monetary Fund. He said corruption and black money had made deep roots in the country and in global ranking, India was rated high. Stating that specific classes of people, including those in high positions, were behind corruption and generation of black money, the PM said the common man was honest and hard working.  The PM cited several instances of an honest taxi or auto driver returning valuables to their customers and hoped people would contribute in this ‘mahayagya’ to tackle corruption and black money in the country.Citing that corruption and terrorism were affecting the country’s vitals, he said counterfeit currency was being pushed into the country from across the border to finance terror. Hawala was another form through which corruption and black money was being utilised to move such ill-gotten money. The government, he said, had taken several steps to tackle the menace and so far unearthed Rs 1.25 lakh crore.

50-day window for depositsOld currency notes can be deposited in banks between November 10 and December 30. Withdrawal transactions fixed at Rs 10,000 per day and Rs 20,000 per week. The ATM withdrawal limit has been fixed at Rs 2,000Banks shut today, ATMs for 2 daysBanks will be closed on Wednesday while ATMs will be shut for two days. Old notes can be deposited in post offices and sub-post offices during the 50-day period. There is no limit on the money depositedSome concessions till Nov 11On humanitarian grounds, old notes will be accepted in hospitals by the airlines and road and rail transport till November 11. Essential facilities, including crematoriums, will accept the old notes till the next three days Common man needn’t fear: GovtPM says specific classes of people, including those in high positions, are behind corruption and generation of black money and that the honest and hard working common man has nothing to fear

What it means for you

What’s valid

All coins and lower-denomination notesRs 100, Rs 50, Rs 20, Rs 10, Rs 5, Rs 2 and Rs 1What to do with existing currency

• 50-day window (November 10 to December 30) has been left open to deposit any amount in bank accounts
• From November 10 to 24, it can be exchanged with smaller/new currency at banks, post offices after producing valid IDs like PAN, Aadhaar and voter’s card with a daily cap of Rs 4,000
• From November 10, new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes with greater security features to be circulated
• From December 30 to March 31, final chance to deposit invalid currency in designated RBI offices after filling out declaration form along with proof and reasons

Limit on withdrawals

ATMs: Rs 2,000/day

Banks:  Rs 10,000/day; Rs 20,000/weekNo cap on cashless transactions

• No restrictions on non-cash payments by cheques, demand drafts, debit/credit cards, e-fund transfers
• Those with medical prescription can buy medicines from chemists with old notes till November 11
• Fuel stations and retail outlets (kendriya bhandar) to accept old notes till Nov 11, but with customer record

Quotes

This is a financial chaos and disaster let loose on the common man. It’s a heartless and ill-conceived blow to the common people and the middle class in the fake name of anti-corruption. — Mamata Banerjee, TMC chiefModern-day Tughlaq has thrown a nuclear trident at poor people of India. Rs 1,000 of today is what Rs 100 was 20 years back. This is insanity. — Manish Tewari, Cong leaderDemonetising high denomination notes can be an effective means to check accumulation of wealth in cash. The government has taken a measure targeting the heart of the black cash economy. — Naushad Forbes, CII presiden

It’s bold: Pranab

• New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee welcomed the move as a bold step that would help unearth unaccounted money as well as counterfeit currency. The President called upon the people not to panic, to follow the government’s guidelines and to avail of the opportunity provided by the government to exchange notes of Rs 1,000 and 500 denomination for new legal tender. — PTI

Rs 100 hot property

• Mumbai: The humble Rs 100 bill had several takers on an otherwise normal weekday evening in the financial capital tonight, even as police had to be deployed outside ATMs to control the crowd waiting eagerly to get their hands on the banknote. There was a beeline to acquire the “hottest commodity” or dispose of the high value Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes, which will become illegal tender at midnight. — PTI

In circulation now

• 1,650 crorenotes of Rs 500
• 670 crorenotes of Rs 1,000

Full text of govt statement on currency withdrawal

People wait to withdraw and deposit their money at an ATM kiosk in Kolkata, India, November 8, 2016. Reuters

Tribune News Service

Full text of the statement released by the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, on Tuesday regarding the withdrawal of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denomination notes and introduction of new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes:1. With a view to curbing financing of terrorism through the proceeds of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) and use of such funds for subversive activities such as espionage, smuggling of arms, drugs and other contrabands into India, and for eliminating Black Money which casts a long shadow of parallel economy on our real economy, it has been decided to cancel the legal tender character of the High Denomination bank notes of Rs.500 and Rs.1000 denominations issued by RBI till now. This will take effect from the expiry of the 8th November, 2016.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)2. Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) in circulation in these denominations are comparatively larger as compared to those in other denominations. For a common person, the fake notes look similar to genuine notes. Use of FICN facilitates financing of terrorism and drug trafficking. Use of high denomination notes for storage of unaccounted wealth has been evident from cash recoveries made by law enforcement agencies from time to time. High denomination notes are known to facilitate generation of black money. In this connection, it may be noted that while the total number of bank notes in circulation rose by 40% between 2011 and 2016, the increase in number of notes of Rs.500/- denomination was 76% and for Rs.1,000/- denomination was 109% during this period. New Series bank notes of Rs.500/- and Rs.2,000/- denominations will be introduced for circulation from 10th November, 2016. Infusion of Rs.2,000/- bank notes will be monitored and regulated by RBI. Introduction of new series of banknotes which will be distinctly different from the current ones in terms of look, design, size and colour has been planned.3. The World Bank in July, 2010 estimated the size of the shadow economy forIndia at 20.7% of the GDP in 1999 and rising to 23.2% in 2007. There are similar estimates made by other Indian and international agencies. A parallel shadow economy corrodes and eats into the vitals of the country’s economy. It generates inflation which adversely affects the poor and the middle classes more than others.  It deprives Government of its legitimate revenues which could have been otherwise used for welfare and development activities. 4. In the last two years, the Government has taken a number of steps to curb the menace of black money in the economy including setting up of a Special Investigation Team (SIT); enacting a law regarding undisclosed foreign income and assets; amending the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement between India and Mauritius and India and Cyprus; reaching an understanding with Switzerland for getting information on Bank accounts held by Indians with HSBC; encouraging the use of non-cash and digital payments; amending the Benami Transactions Act; and implementing the Income Declaration Scheme 2016.5. In order to implement the above decisions of the Government and keeping in view the need to minimise inconvenience to the public, the following operational guidelines have been issued:-(i) Old High Denomination Bank Notes may be deposited by individuals/persons into their bank accounts and/or exchanged in bank branches or Issue Offices of RBI till the close of business hours on 30th December, 2016.(ii) Old High Denomination Bank Notes of aggregate value of Rs.4,000/- only or below held by a person can be exchanged by him/her at any bank branch or Issue Office of Reserve Bank of India for any denomination of bank notes having legal tender character, provided a Requisition Slip as per format to be specified by RBI is presented with proof of identity and along with the Old High Denomination Bank Notes. Similar facilities will also be made available in Post Offices.(iii) The limit of Rs.4,000/- for exchanging Old High Denomination Bank Notes at bank branches or at issue offices of Reserve Bank of India will be reviewed after 15 days and appropriate notification issued, as may be necessary.(iv) There will not be any limit on the quantity or value of Old High Denomination Bank Notes to be credited to the account of the tenderer maintained with the bank, where the Old High Denomination Bank Notes are tendered. However, in accounts where compliance with extant Know Your Customer (KYC) norms is not complete, a maximum value of Rs.50,000/- of Old High Denomination Bank Notes can be deposited.(v) The equivalent value of the Old High Denomination Bank Notes tendered can be credited to an account maintained by the tenderer at any bank in accordance with standard banking procedure and on production of valid proof of Identity.(vi) The equivalent value of the Old High Denomination Bank Notes tendered can be credited to a third party account, provided specific authorisation therefor accorded by the said account holder is presented to the bank, following standard banking procedure and on production of valid proof of Identity of the person actually tendering.(vii) Cash withdrawal from a bank account, over the counter will be restricted to Rs.10,000/- subject to an overall limit of Rs. 20,000/- in a week for the first fortnight, i.e., until the end of business hours on November 24, 2016.(viii) There will be no restriction on the use of any non-cash method of operating the account which will include cheques, demand drafts, credit/debit cards, mobile wallets and electronic fund transfer mechanisms.(ix) Withdrawal from ATMs would be restricted to Rs.2,000 per day per card up to November 18, 2016. The limit will be raised to Rs.4,000 per day per card from November 19, 2016 onwards.(x) For those who are unable to exchange their Old High Denomination Bank Notes or deposit the same in their bank accounts on or before December 30, 2016, an opportunity will be given to them to do so at specified offices of the RBI on later dates along with necessary documentation as may be specified by the Reserve Bank of India.(xi) Instruction is also being issued for closure of banks and Government Treasuries, on 9th November, 2016.(xii) In addition, all ATMs, Cash Deposit Machines, Cash Recyclers and any other machine used for receipt and payment of cash will remain shut on 9th and 10th November, 2016.(xiii) The bank branches and Government Treasuries will function from 10th November, 2016.(xiv) To avoid inconvenience to the public for the first 72 Hours, Old High Denomination Bank Notes will continue to be accepted at Government Hospitals and pharmacies in these hospitals/Railway ticketing counters/ticket counters of Government/Public Sector Undertaking buses and airline ticketing counters at airports; for purchases at consumer co-operative societies, at milk booths, at crematoria/burial grounds, at petrol/diesel/gas stations of Public Sector Oil Marketing Companies and for arriving and departing passengers at international airports and for foreign tourists to exchange foreign currency at airports up to a specified amount.6. The relevant Notifications are available in the website of Finance Ministry(http://finmin.nic.in). Further details including Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) are available on the website of the Reserve Bank of India (https://www.rbi.org.in).

Traders shut door on Rs 500, Rs1,000 notes

Long queues of vehicles at a petrol pump in Sector 33, Chandigarh, on Tuesday night. Tribune photo: Pradeep Tewari

Rajinder Nagarkoti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 8

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced to do away with the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes from midnight on Tuesday, a majority of the city traders immediately stopped accepting the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.Charanjiv Singh, chairman of the Chandigarh Beopar Mandal, said they would hold a meeting on the issue tomorrow, but most traders had stopped taking the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes from tonight.Sanjiv Mahajan, a cloth merchant in Sector 17, said he had issued directions to the staff over the phone not to accept Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. Our shop will only accept payment through credit or debit cards, he said.Echoing similar views, another Sector 17 trader, Pawan Gulati, said with this decision, the sale would immediately dip by 50 to 60 per cent. They would also not accept the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, he said.Chander Verma, owner of a furniture store in the Industrial Area, Phase II, said it was like an emergency situation. Our store will also not accept Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, he said.“The government should have given some time before implementing the orders. It is like dictatorship,” he said.Property dealers and taxi operators will also not accept Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. Raj Kumar Pal, president, Property Consultants Association, said they would not accept Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. “The decision taken by the Modi government is a good step,” he said.Shiv Kumar Sharma, a taxi operator, said immediately after Modi’s announcement, he told his drivers not to accept the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. Dalip Singh, a vendor in Sector 22, said they would accept the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes only till the time the weekly limit of Rs 20,000 is reached.

Shopkeepers to be hit

The decision will majorly hit shopkeepers of the Sector 26 grain market, the Sector 22 Shastri Market, the Sector 15 Patel Market and the Sector 19 Sadar Bazaar. As a majority of the transactions take place without any receipt, the decision will hit them hard.Guest houses seek payments in Rs100 denominationEven guest house owners in villages in Chandigarh such as Burail, Kajheri and Attawa have stopped taking the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes from guests. Jagdish Bhandari, a guest house owner, said they were giving rooms to only those customers who were ready to make payment in Rs 100 currency notes.QuotesIt is a huge surgical strike on black money by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to save the country. Modi has once again proved his 56 inch ka seena. —Sanjay Tandon, City BJP PresidentPM Narendra Modi has once again proved that he is capable of taking bold decisions whether the issue is concerning the security of the country or dealing with Pakistan or black money. No Prime Minister has ever taken such bold decisions. —Satya Pal Jain, Former MPDemonetising currency notes without a three-four day notice will affect people who are without debit and credit cards, especially those admitted to private hospitals. Facsimile of the new Rs 2,000 note was in the social media. Who leaked this and why? Will it not encourage black money again? —Pawan Kumar Bansal, Former Union MinisterThere should be a real fight against black money. With this sudden decision, the middle class and small traders will be the most affected. There is panic among residents after the decision. —Pardeep Chhabra, City Congress President

PPCC chief Capt Amarinder Singh with senior party leaders in Chandigarh on Friday. Tribune photo: Manoj Mahajan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 4

PPCCchief Captain Amarinder Singh today led a 20-member delegation to submit a memorandum to Governor VP Singh Badnore seeking Centre’s intervention for providing justice to the family of ex-serviceman Ram Kishan Grewal, who committed suicide protesting against an inordinate delay in OROP implementation.The Governor assured Amarinder that the memorandum would be forwarded to the Centre at the earliest and the government’s response would also be conveyed to him. Among the senior leaders who accompanied the PPCC president were senior party leader Ambika Soni, party’s Punjab affairs incharge Asha Kumari and former Union Minister Santosh Choudhary, besides PCC senior vice-president Laal Singh and Leader of Opposition in state Assembly Charanjit Singh Channi.

PROMINENT VETERANS (ESM) PART OF DELEGATION

Lt Gen Shergill,Lt Gen Jasbir Dhariwal ( Chief Patron Sanjha Morcha), Maj Gen SPS Grewal, Col Ranjit Boparai (President Sanjha Morcha),Col Charanjit Singh Khera(Gen Secy Sanjha Morcha cum Socila Media coordinator ESM PPCC), Col Bhag singh (Chairman ESM PPCC), 

Lt Gen  Mau Shergill briefed  the  governor about the sad state of Handling  the implementation of OROP  and the death of Sub Ram Kishan Grewal.

Lt Gen JS Dhariwal briefed the governor about the Anomalies of in the OROP notification issued by the Govt, , Col Bhag Singh about the existing anomalies still pending of previous pay commissions, and Col CJS Khera about the irresponsible statements of National Leaders on the death of Sub Ram Kishan Grewal that of tGen VK Singh, Mr Parrikar, and PM directing banks now to release Banks the enhanced Pensions , instead of Mr Arun Jately, he also mentioned that its only Punjab & Sindh bank which have released the latest pension slabs and all other banks are awaiting Finance Minister orders of Mr Arun Jately.

Cong men give memo to DC

Muktsar, November 4

The district Congress on Thursday staged a protest at the entrance of the District Administrative Complex here against the Centre for “ill-treating” AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi when he had gone to meet the family of ex-serviceman Ram Krishan Grewal in Delhi.The activists, led by local MLA Karan Kaur Brar, Gurmeet Singh Khudian and Bhai Harnirpal Singh and handed over a memorandum to the DC. — TNS

OROP slugfest: Modi lying, says Cong

Youth Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring (C) with party activists at a demonstration over OROP in New Delhi on Friday. Photo by Manas Ranjan Bhui

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 4

Political slugfest over suicide by an ex-serviceman and the “One Rank, One Pension (OROP)” scheme continued today with the Finance Minister and the Defence Minister joining issue with the Congress, even as AICC vice-president Rahul Gandhi stepped up offensive against the government, charging PM Narendra Modi of “lying’’ on OROP.While Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said Rahul was politicising the suicide and “no one should try to change a personal tragedy into political gain,” Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said it was the Modi government which had resolved the four-decade-old issue.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)Rahul, accusing the PM of “lying”, said what retired soldiers  were getting was “enhanced pension”, insisting that the demand for OROP remained unfulfilled. “What PM says is OROP is actually pension enhancement. The PM should stop lying on the issue,” he said after interacting with a group of ex-servicemen at the AICC headquarters this afternoon.Speaking to mediapersons, the Defence Minister said he had asked the officials to expedite paper work to ensure all beneficiaries got pension under OROP within the next two months. Of the nearly one lakh pensioners who are yet to get the enhanced amount, he said a majority did not have the requisite documents. The department concerned had been asked to reconstruct the files and, if necessary, seek affidavits that would be processed. Sources in the Ministry of Defence said the government’s commitment towards implementation of OROP could be gauged from the fact that the budget allocation had gone up from Rs 54,000 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 82,000 crore in the current fiscal.The figure would actually be touching close to Rs 90,000 crore under the revised estimates for 2016-17.As for the calculation mistakes that figured in the case of deceased subedar Ram Kishan Grewal, the sources said the data for different categories/periods ran into 195 tables which was processed at 22 pension processing centres. Conceding that the soldier who committed suicide ought to have got Rs 3,026 more than his Rs 22,608 pension amount, they said, an  error had occurred as he was eligible to draw one pension unlike most soldiers who were entitled to draw two pensions under different schemes.The ministry, at a meeting held with ex-servicemen’s associations and bank representatives on October 24, had directed the banks at the processing centres to monitor complaints on calculation errors, the sources added. Meanwhile, with the rise in the number of pensioners every month, the ministry has begun a pilot project to provide e-pension payment orders to new retirees.

What they said…

• It doesn’t behove senior national leaders to exploit a tragedy of this kind, particularly in intensive care units of the hospitals. A more responsible behaviour is expected of them. — Arun Jaitley, Finance Minster
• The demand for OROP remains unfulfilled… What PM says is OROP is actually pension enhancement. ThePM should stop lying on the issue. — Rahul Gandhi, Cong vice-president

Close to China border, refurbished landing ground to aid movement of troops, material

A Boeing C-17 Globemaster III lands at an upgraded airstrip in Mechuka, Arunachal Pradesh. Tribune photo

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 3

More than 54 years after India was caught napping due to poor infrastructure during the 1962 Chinese aggression, yet another airfield in north-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh has been opened for military use.This is the fifth such airfield to be upgraded under a long-winded plan for rapid deployment of artillery guns, troops and even tanks.An Advanced Landing Ground (euphuism for British-era mud-paved landing strip) at Mechuka, located in Yargyap river valley of West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh, has been upgraded to a paved runaway. The Indian Air Force today said it had landed its biggest transport plane, the Boeing C-17, at the 6,200-ft-high airfield. The plane can carry some 70 tonnes of load.The airfield is located near the Mcmahon Line (the boundary with China) and the nearest air/rail head is at Dibrugarh, about 500 km through mountains which are landslide-prone, stretching the travel time to two days.The landing of C-17 is a quantum jump from the existing capability of AN-32 and C-130J aircraft. Such airlift capability facilitates critical requirement of transfer of men and material in this rugged terrain of several adjacent river valleys, interspersed by high mountain ranges that inhibit road connectivity.Besides Mechuka, airfileds at Ziro, Along, Walong and Passighat are the other ones which have been opened. Passighat allows fighter jet operations. The last of the ALGs at Tuting is expected to open by the year-end while the helicopter landing ground at Tawang would be ready by mid-2017.The British had created small mud-paved landing grounds during the World War-II for their Burma and east India operations. The existing ALGs are too small in length and allow only very small aircraft to land and have a non-existent ground support. These are rendered unusable during rains.These airfields dot various folds of the Himalayas in Arunachal and cover an east-west axis, bringing the IAF and Army’s rapid deployment capabilities much closer to the Mcmahon Line.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi sits inside a police bus as he is detained in New Delhi on Wednesday. AFP

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 2

No one in Congress circles had imagined how this day would turn out for party vice-president Rahul Gandhi, who only few months ago had been turned back from Jantar Mantar by a group of ex-servicemen protesting over One Rank One Pension. Retired soldiers had then said they didn’t want the matter politicised.But today as politics played out around Subedar Ram Kishan Grewal’s suicide with Delhi police providing the fodder by detaining top leaders, including Rahul who wanted to meet the deceased’s relatives. Congress leaders privately said Rahul had made his point and his presence was felt.“Have you seen this kind of energy in the party since Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s Varanasi road show on August 2? The whole leadership is on the streets with Rahul ji who just wanted to express solidarity with the grief-stricken family,” a Congress leader said.Seniors also acknowledged that Rahul had made his point by preferring to be detained for his attempts to meet the wards of the deceased ex-serviceman rather than seek bail.Personally, Rahul made it a government versus Subedar Grewal’s family issue by saying upon his release tonight: “The least government should do is apologise to the family which has made a sacrifice. All I wanted was to meet them and say I am with them in this hour of grief but they detained the family and harassed them just so they wanted to speak to me.” Rahul was detained by the Delhi Police for nearly eight hours.Congress leaders, meanwhile, said OROP would become Rahul’s second major agitation point after the land acquisition ordinance on which the government had been forced to blink.Social activist Anna Hazare, a former soldier, said: “Unfortunate that ex-serviceman committed suicide. On one hand the government t glorifies soldiers and on the other doesn’t fulfil promises.”A group of ex-servicemen, which has been leading the protest at Jantar Mantar over OROP scheme, distanced itself from the case. “The suicide did not take place at Jantar Mantar. Grewal’s friends had informed the police about the suicide bid but it was too late. He was taken to a hospital from where they wanted to bring the body to Jantar Mantar, which we refused,” Col Anil Kaul (retd), media adviser to United Front of Ex-Servicemen Movement was quoted by PTI.

LAHORE (Saeed Chaudhry) – Lieutenant General Qamar Javed Bajwa is very likely to be appointed as the new Chief of army staff while Lieutenant General Zubair Mahmood Hayat as the new Chairman of Joint Chief of Staff Committee (CJCSC), sources told Daily Pakistan.

The ongoing battle against the menace of terrorism across the country was the main ground on which the important decision was made, sources told Daily Pakistan adding that the recommended officials were the adequate persons for the task.

Lt. Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa was previously Commander of important Rawalpindi Corps and was presently employed as Inspector General Training and Evaluation, at GHQ, a position General Raheel Sharif held before becoming the army chief.

Lt Gen Zubair Mahmood Hayat is the second in the seniority list of lieutenant generals. He was currently serving as Chief of General Staff (CGS) in GHQ.

Lt Gen Zubair served as Bahawalpur Corps Commander and Director-General of the Strategic Plans Division. He also served as General Officer Commanding, Sialkot. Lt Gen Zubair was due to retire on January 13, 2017.

The present Army Chief Gen. Raheel Sharif will retire on Nov 28 this year and Gen. Rashad Mahmood, who is the existing Chairman Joint Chief of Staff Committee, will be retiring a day prior to the Army Chief, on Nov 27.

https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/pakistan/government-army-reach-consensus-on-the-next-coas-sources/

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            7th-CPC-DESW 

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 29

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Saturday issued instructions to keep the disability pension of armed forces at previously allowed rates and there would be no reduction in the same.On September 30, the MoD had issued instructions, which had introduced a slab-based system for calculating pensions for disability. The MoD had cited the 7th pay commission for determining the disability pension for Defence Forces. Before September 30, disabled soldiers were getting pensions based on percentage of disability. The new ruling meant pensions were reduced and this had led to protests from the retired soldiers and there was widespread criticism from opposition parties and the military establishment.Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had referred to the matter to the anomalies committee. Instructions issued on Saturday say that disability pensions will continue to be calculated at old rates that are percentage based. The system will continue until the committee submits a report, defence sources said.The Defence Ministry had previously said the 7th pay commission had recommended a slab-based system for determining disability pension, which was accepted by the government.A percentage-based system was followed under the 6th pay commission for calculating disability pension for armed forces as well as civilians. What the military personnel are upset about is that civilians will continue to be paid pension according to the earlier “percentage system”, which means that a civilian employee will get higher disability pension than his military counterpart.

Disability pension for forces under old formula, for now

New Delhi, October 29

The Defence Ministry on Saturday ordered implementation of the 7th Pay Commission’s recommendations on pensions but added the disability pension component will be paid as per the old system until the pay panel’s Anomaly Committee comes out with a solution.A ministry order, issued on the eve of Diwali, announced implementation of revised pension under 7th Pay Commission for pre-2016 defence force pensioners, said an official statement. It also said the issue of disability pensions — which is presently on percentage basis but the panel has recommended making it slab based — has been submitted to the Anomaly Committee, and, for now, the old system will continue.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)“The implementation of 7th CPC recommendation relating to methodology for calculation of disability element has been referred to the Anomaly Committee,” the statement said. “The disability element which was being paid to pre-2016 Defence Forces Pensioners as on December 31, 2015 will continue to be paid pending decision on the recommendations of the Anomaly Committee,” it said.As per the order, for those who started getting pensions before January 1, 2016, revised pension will be calculated by multiplying by 2.57 the old pension drawn in December 2015. A soldier getting disability pension as a percentage of his salary will get a fixed slab-based amount if the pay panel’s recommendation implemented. — IANS

Panel report awaited

• The 7th pay panel favoured a slab-based system for determining disability pension, which was accepted by the government
• But the matter was sent to the Anomaly Committee after pensioners demanded 6th pay panel’s percentage system to stay

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. File photo

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, Oct 27Two days after Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar ordered a cross-checking of facts on rank parity between officers of the three forces and civilians, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Thursday issued a clarification saying there has been no “downgrading” of service officers.The MoD said media reports had “erroneously” stated that the equivalence has been disturbed and status of service officers has been downgraded.“It is clarified that there has been no down-gradation or any change in the existing equivalence of the service ranks whatsoever”, spokesperson for the MoD said. The existing functional equivalence as clarified in 1991 and further reiterated in 1992, 2000, 2004 and 2005 has only been re-affirmed, the MoD said.There have been reports in the media that the central government has issued a new order lowering the status of military officers with respect to their civilian counterparts in the Armed Forces Headquarters.

(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)

The MoD said: “The present reiteration of rank equivalence, is only for matters of assigning duties and functional responsibilities as is already existing in different offices of the respective service headquarters of the Army, Navy and Indian Air Force having component of service personnel as well as Civilian officers”.This has no bearing on civilian employees outside these offices of the service headquarters.A circular issued on October 18 and reported in media said a Major General (Rear Admiral in the Navy and Vice-Marshal in the Air Force) was at the same level as principal director at the Armed Force Headquarters (AFHQ) Civil Service. Similarly, Colonel had been placed on the same level as joint director on a civil post.