DISABLED SOLDIERS AND THEIR BASIC RIGHTS

Disability pension for armed forces personnel has been a matter of debate and disquiet for quite some time. Now with the setting up of a committee by the Chief of Defence Staff, the spotlight is finally on this long-simmering issue. NARINDER SINGH DAHIYA dissects the issues from all angles.

- Col Narinder Singh Dahiya

On 10 Apr 2023, it was widely reported in the media that the Department of Military Affairs (DMA), headed by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Anil Chauhan, had set up a committee to study the increase in disability pensions among armed force personnel. This happened in response to the Comptroller and Auditor General’s Report (CAG) on the subject, which insinuated that something is not right in the procedure for grant of disability pensions in the Armed Forces. The media reports suggested that the CAG commented negatively about the procedure for granting the disability pension and highlighted that some categories of soldiers are benefiting disproportionately because of some loopholes.

The media reports, however, failed to carry out an in-depth analysis of the whole subject and just concentrated on creating a media frenzy. The CAG, now infamous for reporting the huge losses in the 2G allotment and Coal Scam (no one has ever been indicted by the courts in these scams even after the passage of 10 years), has raised another false red flag that can tarnish the image of the only organisation (the Indian Armed Forces) of the country that enjoys high reputation and respect among the citizens of the country. The CAG report seems to be based purely on the number of soldiers getting disability pensions without studying the other laws of the land or even the various international conventions on the subject matter.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) is an international human rights treaty that outlines the rights of persons with disabilities and the obligations of governments to promote, protect, and ensure those rights. The Convention was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2006 and entered into force in 2008. India is a signatory to this convention, and India ratified the said convention in early October 2007.