PAY COMMISSION AND THE ARMED FORCES
This is a topic I came across when I
got a Whatsapp forward of an NDTV Discussion on the 7th Pay
Commission and its impact on the Armed Forces – given in the Video clip below.
This was a discussion anchored by Barkha Dutt, and featured an Ex Army Chief, A
former Finance Secretary, A Senior Retired Police Officer, several other middle
level Armed Forces Officers and political representatives of two parties. A
very high quality discussion, this featured decently presented pros and cons
form both sides of the debate very fairly, and yet, the contents were
worrisome.
The debate, or dissatisfaction of the
Armed Forces {as per the media video above}, is around the 7th Pay
Commission Recommendations in terms of some allowances – Hardship Allowance,
for example in comparison to the other services, and parity with other
services, among other things. Yet another vital point raised was the apparent
absence of representation of the Armed Forces in the commission. Some
recommendations are, to be quite frank, even from a layman’s perspective, very
strange indeed; add to that the views of the civilian bureaucrats, and it
creates a rather mildly troubling scenario
I am trying to choose my words with
caution, given my lack of expertise in this area; I don’t proclaim to be an
expert on Service Salaries and Service Rules of either The Armed Forces or any
other Government Service; that discussion – debating the minutiae involved is
beyond the scope of my blog and my knowledge. Neither is that the point of the
article I am writing; these matters are complex, requiring specialized
knowledge of a high order. Naturally, these are not amenable to public debate
in social media, at least; that said, matters arising from this debate,
tangential in some ways, and yet extremely vital and disturbing need the public
consideration.
When a Former Army Chief uses the
words “Blatant Discrimination”, and “Injustice” in reference to the Armed
Forces treatment – on whatever parameter – it is time the public takes note of
this. The points raised by the Ex Chief in this debate are hard-hitting, and
specific; they need to be addressed. I am sure this is happening at Government
levels, but given that these are public statements, we should take note of
them, and be informed
Furthermore, when 18 Ex-Chiefs write
to the Prime Minister, in regard to any matter whatever under the sun, and the
said public authority does not respond, it is one thing; that matter might be
under consideration, requiring silence on the part of his office. But when an
Ex-Chief laments the lack of response from the same august office in response
to the letter, and in the same discussion notes this has never happened before,
{or words to that effect} , this is frankly disturbing. We aren’t talking of
one or two Ex-Chiefs; we are talking of a whole bunch of them – no less than 18
in number.
This is not a matter for
blame-gaming; neither is it one for hypernationalism and fervent patriotism.
This is a matter of silent contemplation, of a deep introspection. The reason
for that is that the statements above, disturbing as they are, point not to the
political class, but straight to us, the people of India. Yes, the same people
who go hyperbolic in arguments, conversations, Social Media and the like on
nationalism and the praiseworthy deeds of the Indian Armed Forces. This
includes I, My And Myself, as I too have been sharing Indian Army Deeds on my
Facebook page quite regularly.
I say this because of two reasons :
one, the political class is due to us, due to our votes, our opinions, and our
ambitions. It responds to the people and what they value. While it is beyond
debate that the political class, despite the weaknesses, has tried to do their
best – their hands are tied by the conflicting demands on the exchequer in a
resource-scarce economy. In such a scenario, balancing the scales of the
spending is not a task for weak hearts. We can’t just up and blame the
political class; it doesn’t exist in a vacuum, it responds to the public, howsoever
much may anyone deny it.
If we want the political class to
give more to the Armed Forces- then that “more” is going to have to come from
somewhere else. That means, some other areas will have to sacrifice; it is for
us, as a people, through our voice and opinion, to determine the percentages to
each demand – and this is expressed through our elected representatives. Similarly,
if the issues of disparity etc expressed are to be addressed – it might just
require additional spends on the budget. Where is that money going to come
from? It has to come from some other head!
That is the entire point – we accept
that The Armed Forces are pretty damned important, they protect us and so on and
so forth; but do we, through our deeds – as opposed to statements and Social
Media comments – express this sentiment? Are we, as a people, prepared to go
the extra mile for the sake of the betterment of the Armed Forces? Are we
prepared to sacrifice something for these people – the ones who readily give
their lives for us? You can even extend that argument for the Paramilitary and
other security forces, some of whom sure could do with more!
This is important, as it is only when
the political class realizes that The Armed Forces are on priority no 1 for the
Indian People, or at least among the top, will a fundamental change in approach
come about. And that won’t happen unless we really understand what they go
through and the sacrifices these brave soldiers do in order that we can be
safe. Further, there has to be a far greater realization of the working
conditions, demands and the career problems faced by these brave people. Rather
than give armchair comments from the complete safety of our laptops, desktops
and sofa sets, we should try and understand what these people go through.
I say this because of some rather stunning
comments I heard in discussions around The Armed Forces by civilians which have
surprised me and frankly shocked me; the insensitivity shown towards the Armed
Forces is quite shocking, as is the complete lack of understanding of their requirements,
their problems and the conditions under which they operate. Excuse me, these
people are willing to die for the country – are you willing to do that? Are you
even capable enough of such a tall order? Do you have that inherent capability?
It is far harder a task than going to a foreign land to work, or working in the
safe protected environs of most civilian jobs, perhaps even all!
Take the example in the discussion –
how can you equate a posting to the North East for some classes of bureaucrats with
a frontline high-altitude posting in the Armed Forces? It is, on the face of
it, ridiculous! And yet, that is what has transpired as I understand from the
discussion – correct me if I am wrong. How did this come about? Clearly because
of the factors listed above – given that the bureaucrats arose from within us,
they didn’t drop down from Mars! Would this have transpired had there been a
better understanding of the reality among the educated civilian classes, from
which the public servants arise?
But we, the people – are interested
not in these things, by and large – but in going to foreign lands to earn,
migrate and quit the nation; or to do a
cushy peaceful job that guarantees our
safety. We are the armchair brigade –
self included. There is nothing wrong in that – each individual has own desires
and ambitions; and is entitled to self-fulfillment. But that does not mean you
ignore the justified needs of the people who lay down their lives for you; or
that you are not prepared to sacrifice – should the need arise – for their
sakes, just as they have done a million times over since 1947!
Sure, this is a dreamy article; an
article that calls for public introspection, internal soul-searching. I do not
blame the political class, scream at them, or find fault with them; and the
reason is that, so far as I am aware, no
peaceful permanent change has ever been triggered without a dream at the core
of the change, a dream that initially sounded foolish, immature and impractical.
If I can influence even one reader to introspect – my task has been done. But
this introspection is required for all of us – we, who wear our patriotism on
our sleeves, and yet spit on the road, bribe, urinate in public, ignore the
needs of the poor, and so on and so forth…
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