'Military payscales may be delinked from government staff'
Thursday, 24 April 2008, 18:14 IST
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New Delhi: Indicating a move that will bring much cheer to the armed forces, the government said Wednesday it was examining whether military payscales could be delinked from those for other government employees. The demand for delinking payscales made by the armed forces "will be looked into", Minister of State for Defence M.M. Pallam Raju said during question hour in the Rajya Sabha. The armed forces have made known their unhapiness over the revised scales recommended by the Sixth Pay commission, saying it had not met their expectations. Upwards of 50 officers have also sought premature retirement following the presentation of the commission's report last month. According to Raju, Defence Minister A.K. Antony has urged a re-examination of the commission's recommendations. Following the commission's report, the three service chiefs met Antony and presented a memorandum demanding better scales. Members of the Pay Commission also met the service chiefs in a bid to assuage their hurt feelings. Replying to a supplementary on granting permanent commissions to women short service commission officers, Raju said this was under consideration. "As of now, the rules permit only men short service commission officers to be given permanent commissions. We are looking into the matter of granting permanent commissions to women short service commission officers too," he added. Asked about the shortfall in recruitment of officers in the armed forces, Raju attributed this to changes in the socio-economic environment, changes in career preferences, better employment opportunities in other sectors, tough selection procedures and tough service conditions in the defence forces.
Source: IANS
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