Government committed to one rank-one pension, no doubt about it: PM Narendra Modi
Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 29
One rank, one pension We are in consultation with defence personnel on its definition. We are committed to it. We are looking for a way where all stakeholders agree. This should not be politicised.
Three days after completing his first year in power, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a no-holds- barred interview to The Tribune today, said his government was committed to One Rank One Pension (OROP) for ex-servicemen and that no one should have any doubts about its implementation. The PM said the Congress was politicising OROP.
“The previous governments don’t have the right to speak about it because they did nothing when they were in power.”
On OROP, the PM said the government was “in constant discussions with the armed forces personnel to arrive at a please-all definition of OROP of which there are varied versions.”
“No one should have any doubts about OROP’s implementation. I want everyone to know that through The Tribune. But there are varied versions about what the definition of OROP should be. Would it be proper for me to take a decision without keeping the armed forces personnel in the loop? So we are trying to arrive at a please-all decision,” the PM said.
In an evident dig at Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi who recently threatened an agitation if OROP was not implemented soon, the PM said, “OROP for me is not a political programme. For 57 years the jawans have been demanding OROP, but the previous governments did nothing. Those who were part of then governments must realize they don’t have the right to speak on this issue.”
Asked if the government would expedite OROP, the PM said the Government was committed to it. “The government has been formed for five years.” Need Definition of One Rank One Pension, Says PM Modi
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