Ex-Servicemen Association of Sikkim demands pension equality

They claimed that there was no equality in the one rank, one pension scheme issued by the Government of India

By Prakash Adhikari

The ex-servicemen of Sikkim has been protesting at Jantar Mantar for the last 77 days, demanding equality in pensions for ex-servicemen and the wives of those who had served in the Indian Army.

They claimed that there was no equality in the one rank, one pension scheme issued by the Government of India.

On Saturday, ex-servicemen from various parts of Sikkim had gathered at the government residence of MP Indrahang Subba
in Gangtok to submit a memorandum to him as part of their demand for pension equality.

The protestors urged the government to address their concerns and ensure that they received equal treatment under the one rank, one pension scheme.

Lok Sabha MP Indrahang Subba had pledged to send a forwarding letter to the Defence Minister as soon as possible, saying, “We will go to Delhi and put forward our demand.”

A.P. Rai, General Secretary of the ex-servicemen’s association, had also spoken out, stating that the one rank, one pension scheme had anomalies and mistakes that needed to be corrected. “The newly getting higher paid and the old ones are getting less,” he said.

While ex-servicemen across the country had a predetermined schedule for submitting memorandums to their respective MPs on April 30, the ex-servicemen of Sikkim had submitted their memorandums a day earlier since their Lok Sabha MPs would not be in Gangtok on the scheduled day.

The protest by the ex-servicemen’s association of Sikkim had drawn attention to the issue of pension equality for ex-servicemen and their wives. The protestors had urged the government to address their concerns and ensure that they received equal treatment under the one rank, one pension scheme.

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