OROP pension discrepancies: Indian SC imposes INR 2 lakh fine on Modi govt
New Delhi: The Indian Supreme Court has reprimanded the Modi government for its prolonged delay in resolving pension discrepancies for retired regular captains under the One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the court today imposed a fine of INR 2 lakh, to be deposited in the armed forces’ welfare fund, and set a final deadline of November 14 for the government to address the issue.
A bench comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and R Mahadevan warned that if the government fails to act by the deadline, it will order a 10% increase in pensions for the affected officers. The court was responding to the BJP government’s lack of action despite a December 2021 order from the Kochi Bench of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) identifying six anomalies needing correction.
The court scheduled the next hearing for November 25, emphasizing the urgency of resolving the pension discrepancies, which stem from anomalies in the OROP scheme introduced in 2015. The scheme aimed to equalize pensions for past and current retirees, but issues arose for captains and majors due to incomplete data. Despite the formation of a One Man Judicial Committee in 2016 to address these issues, no resolution has been reached.
