Defence Ministry expands definition of family for officers housing rules
Forty years after the defence housing rules came into existence, the Ministry of Defence has removed a long standing contradiction by redefining the term family for commissioned officers. Under the revised rules, it now includes parents as dependents — ending decades of exclusion faced by officers who safeguarded the nation while caring for ageing parents beyond the reach of official policy.
In a significant amendment to official accommodation rules, dating back to 1986, the Defence Ministry has expanded the definition of “family” for service officers across the Army, Navy, and Air Force, making parents eligible for family accommodation at duty stations. The change marks a decisive shift away from marriage-centric norms that had governed defence housing entitlements since the colonial era.
The revised policy updates long-standing defence accommodation guidelines, replacing narrow definitions that limited “family” to spouse and children. Under the amended rules, “family” will now include parents ordinarily residing with the officer, in addition to spouse, legitimate and legally adopted children, and dependent siblings.
The amendment applies to the allotment of official family accommodation at duty stations, with the exception of a limited category of centralised accommodation pools. It comes into force with immediate effect from the date of issue of the official letter.
Under the new framework, married officers remain eligible for family accommodation if their family resides with them. Crucially, unmarried, divorced, widowed, and widower officers above 35 years of age will now also be considered for family accommodation, provided they fall within the expanded definition of family.
For officers below 35 years of age, cases may be considered individually by higher authorities on merit, ensuring flexibility while maintaining administrative oversight. Divorced and widowed officers with dependent children will be eligible irrespective of age.
The move addresses a long-standing grievance where officers caring for elderly parents were denied family accommodation solely due to marital status - a condition that no longer applies.
The policy reform followed detailed representations by Wing Commander Soumya Deep Das, an Indian Air Force officer currently posted in Punjab, to the President of India. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy and Air Force Academy with over 18 years of service, Das had persistently flagged the inconsistency in defence accommodation rules, arguing that officers tasked with national security should not be forced to choose between service and caregiving responsibilities.
With this amendment, defence services formally recognise a reality long lived by officers in uniform - that family responsibility does not begin or end with marriage, and service to the nation must coexist with duty to one’s parents.The new Rule now means that Commissioned officers can now officially include dependent parents while seeking family accommodation at their place of posting.
