Early Times Report
JAMMU, Oct 14: The Ex-Central Paramilitary Forces (CPMF) Welfare Association, Jammu and Kashmir (UT), held a press conference at Gandhi Nagar, Jammu, under the chairmanship of D.K. Chauhan, General Secretary of the association. The conference aimed to draw attention to the long-pending demands of the Central Paramilitary Forces, including BSF, CRPF, CISF, ITBP, SSB, and Assam Rifles personnel. Addressing the media, D.K. Chauhan highlighted that the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), Government of India, vide order No. 1 dated 23-11-2012, had already approved the proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs to extend benefits to CAPF personnel similar to those enjoyed by ex-servicemen of the defence forces. The committee had also directed the State and Union Territory governments to extend suitable benefits to retired CAPF personnel, but the implementation remains pending.
Chauhan further explained that although the BSF, CRPF, CISF, ITBP, SSB, and Assam Rifles are recognized as Armed Forces of the Union under the Ministry of Home Affairs, their service conditions differ significantly from those of the defence personnel.
The CRPF personnel, for instance, are governed by the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972, which deprives them of several benefits granted to the armed forces. He emphasized that this discrepancy in service conditions and post-retirement benefits should be rectified to ensure parity and justice for CAPF personnel who serve under equally challenging conditions.
The association also expressed concern over the non-payment of arrears recommended by the 7th Pay Commission. They pointed out that while the 7th Pay Commission had recommended a multiplication factor of 2.57, a new advisory raised it to 3.68, yet arrears for the past 18 months remain unpaid. The association warned that if the government continues to ignore their demands, it could lead to unrest among the 65 lakh central employees.
The demands reiterated during the press conference included the implementation of the "One Rank, One Pension" (OROP) policy for all paramilitary forces, release of pending 18-month DA arrears, and settlement of long-overdue family pension and welfare benefits by December 2023.
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