Casualty Pensionary Awards for Armed Forces Officers & POBR invalided out from 1.1.1996

Rationalization of casualty Pensionary Awards for the Armed Forces Officers and Personnel below Officer Rank (PBOR) invalided out from service prior to 1.1.1996: Extension of benefit of broad banding of percentage of disability/ war injury.

No 12(16)/2009/D(Pen/Policy)

Government of India

Ministry of Defence

Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare

New Delhi, the 15th September, 2014

The undersigned is directed to refer to the provisions stipulated in Para 7.2 of this Ministry’s letter No 1(2)/97/D(Pen-C) dated 31.1.2001 through which the concept of broad banding of percentage of disability/ war injury was introduced in respect of those Armed Forces Officers and Personnel below Officer Rank who were invalided out of service on or after 1.1.1996 on account of disability / war injury accepted as attributable to or aggravated by Military Service. The said provision for determining extent of disability / war injury was also extended to pre – 1.1.1996 invalided out cases from 1.7.2009 vide this Ministry’s letter No 10 (01)/D(Pen/Policy)2009/Vol II dated 19.1.2010 provided that the Armed Forces personnel were in receipt of disability element/ war injury element for disability more than 20% as on 1.7.2009.

2. Consequent upon receipt of reference from various Pensioners’ Associations for extending the provisions regarding broad banding of percentage of disability to such pre – 1.1.1996 Armed Forces pensioners from 1.1.1996 itself, the matter has been suitably examined in this Ministry. In partial modification of this Ministry’s above said letter dated 19th January 2010, the President is now pleased to decide that with effect from 1.1.1996, the benefit of broad banding of percentage of disability / war injury shall be allowed to Armed Forces Officers and PBOR pensioners who were invalided out of service prior to 1.1.1996 and were in receipt of disability element/ war injury element as on 1.1.1996. In such cases where the pensioner was not in receipt of disability element as on 1.1.1996 but became entitled at a later stage due to reassessment of disability more than 20%, this benefit shall be allowed from the same date. Similarly, in those cases where the pensioners were in receipt of disability element/ war injury element as on 1.1.1996 but the same was discontinued at a later stage due to reassessment of disability as less than 20%, the disability element/ war injury element shall be discontinued from the later date as hithertofore. However, in those pre-1.1.1996 cases where the disability element / war injury element was not allowed for disability being accepted as less than 20% at initial stage or subsequent stage on reassessment of disability, the same will continue to be disallowed and such cases will not be re-opened.

3. The disability element/ war injury element of pension in all such cases shall be recomputed accordingly under these orders by the Pension Sanctioning Authorities (PSAs) concerned for regulating payment under this Ministry’s letters No. PC 1{2}/97/D(Pen-C) dated 16.5.2001, No 16(6)/2008(1)/D(Pen/Policy) dated 4.5.2009 and letter No. 17(4)/2008(1)/ D(Pen/Policy)/Vol-V dated 15.2.2011. For this purpose, each affected Armed Forces pensioner who were invalided out of service prior to 1.1.1996 and were in receipt of disability element/ war injury element on 1.1.1996 or thereafter, shall submit an application in the format enclosed as Annexure to this letter to the PSAs concerned through their Pension Disbursing Agencies and Record Offices in the case of PBOR and through Pension Disbursing Agencies in the case of Commissioned Officers to PSAs concerned for revision of disability element/ war injury element. PSAs may, however, also identify the affected cases from the corrigendum PPOs issued by them based on the application received in terms of this Ministry’s above said letter dated 19.1.2010, and for issue of corrigendum PPO.

4. If a pensioner, to whom benefit accrues under the provisions of this letter, had already died on or after 1.1.1996 but before date of issue of this letter, the application for revision shall be submitted by the family pensioners or by his heir, as the case may be. Payment of LTA shall, however, be regulated as per the extant Government orders on the subject matter.

5. All other terms and conditions for grant / revision of disability element/ war injury element of pension in respect of Armed Force pensioners invalided out of service prior to 1.1.1996, which are not affected by the provisions of this letter, will remain unchanged.

6. This issues with the concurrence of Finance Division of this Ministry vide their ID No PC to 10(22)/2009/Fin/Pen dated 19/08/2014.

Yours faithfully

( Chanan Ram Saini )

Deputy Secretary (Pension)