Diwali 'gift' for soldiers: 7th Pay Commission arrears to be paid out before Oct. 30?

New Delhi, Oct. 13: India's soldiers may be in for a small Diwali bonus from the government -- an interim payment that could amount to a month's pay ahead of Diwali while the government and the military chiefs resolve issues relating to the pay commission notification, the Economic Times has reported.

Citing an October 10 Defence ministry order that "pending issuance" of the pay commission notification, the President had sanctioned payment of arrears on ad hoc basis, the paper said arrears would be 10 percent of the current drawn pay (including dearness allowance) for all soldiers, calculated from January 2016, which would amount roughly to a month's salary as a sort of Diwali bonus.

While this may sound a happy note to Diwali, what's worrying is that unlike the civil services, the armed forces have neither got their pay commission-related arrears nor have their new pay scales been applied as the chiefs of the three services are wrangling with the government to correct 'anomalies' in the pay commission's compensation structure for the forces, the paper said. And the service chiefs have taken a strong stand that the pay commission recommendations will not be implemented until the government resolves the anomalies related to disability pay, pensions and other issues.