With the armed forces reportedly upset over a recent letter issued by the Defence Ministry wherein the status of officers has been lowered as compared to their civilian counterparts, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has stepped in and assured the Services the issue will be resolved soon.
The circular issued by the Ministry, dated October 18, on rank equivalence between defence officers and civil service officers, brings the rank of armed forces officers a notch down compared to their earlier status. The circular says the equations are to be followed in Service Headquarters and “has the approval of the Hon'ble Raksha Mantri” (Defence Minister).
The order equates an army Major General (Rear Admiral in the navy and Vice Marshal in the air force) to a principal director in the Armed Force Headquarters (AFHQ) Civil Service. A Brigadier/Commodore/Air Commodore is to be equated with a director, and a Colonel/Captain/Group Captain is to be at par with a joint director in the civil service. So far, a colonel was equated with a director. Earlier, a Major General was treated on a par with a Joint Secretary.
When asked about resentment amongst the armed forces over this order, Parrikar said here on Tuesday while some people were trying to misguide, the issue relates to only functional responsibility (of armed forces) and not status, vis-a-vis their civilian counterparts.
The Minister said he will take a look at all the previous orders to see if there was any discrepancy. Sources said the issue is likely to be resolved within a week after Parrikar goes through the relevant papers and file.
‘Brazilian aircraft manufacturer cannot escape Indian laws’
Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer cannot escape Indian laws just because it has struck a settlement with American authorities over corruption in sale of planes to India and three other countries, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said here on Tuesday.
The CBI investigation into the USD 208 million deal will go by Indian laws on corruption, kickbacks, whatever it is, subject to evidence, he told reporters.
The Brazilian aircraft manufacturer has come under the scanner of the US Justice Department after the former admitted to having paid kickbacks for a range of defence deals with many countries.
Embraer has agreed to pay over USD 205 million to resolve charges of corruption and making bribe payments to officials in foreign nations, including USD 5.76 million allegedly being paid to an agent in India, in connection with the sale of three military aircraft for Indian Air Force.