Miffed over the delay in implementation of ‘One Rank One Pension (OROP), a group of ex-servicemen on Monday said they will boycott all official functions, including 50th anniversary celebrations of the victory in 1965 war with Pakistan to register their protest.
Ex-servicemen are on a relay hunger strike all over the country for the last eight days despite top government sources indicating that OROP will be implemented soon and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will announce it. This scheme will benefit more than 22 lakh veterans and six lakh widows and will cost `8,340 crores every year.
Announcing its decision to boycott official functions and 1965 war celebrations, which will take place at a grand scale in September in New Delhi and other parts of the country, Chairman of Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement Major General Satbir Singh(retired) also said widows of 1965 war were not getting their dues besides the soldiers who fought the war. Veterans had also threatened to hold protest rallies ahead of Bihar assembly polls likely to be held in September-October and have sought help of various political parties to highlight their cause.
Meanwhile, asked about indications that the Government might extend OROP to Jawans and other ranks to begin with, media advisor of the Ex-Servicemen Movement Colonel Anil Kaul(retired) termed it as “tragic” and said the government was trying to divide the retired soldiers fraternity.