The Minister for Defence, Manohar Parrikar, on Monday said the final order explaining the details, including the rule of minimum service requirements for the three Forces under the One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme will soon be made public.

Addressing the media on the sidelines of an Engineers Conclave at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Parrikar said soldiers who have retired after following proper procedure will not be impacted in any way. The Prime Minister himself had also clarified that those retiring prematurely will be entitled to OROP benefits.

He said that in devising the OROP scheme, the bureaucracy and the leadership of the armed forces are on the same page. There is no dissonance between the two, “But you need to understand that paying ₹8,000 crore is not same as ₹8, it takes time,” he said.

He also clarified that the voluntary retirement scheme for the armed forces is very different from that for civilians. In the forces there is no concept of normal VRS, so even if the personnel apply for VRS, it could be rejected. But if someone applies for health reasons or injuries, they could be considered.

However, if the retirement happens before a specific time, then the person may not get the OROP benefits. The Ministry will further clarify the issue, he said. On the matter of defence procurement policy and ‘Made in India’ campaign for defence equipment, he said efforts are on to make the processes transparent and simple.

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