OROP: Ex-servicemen sign petition in blood; protest in Delhi over delay in implementation of scheme

New Delhi, June 14: To press for the One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme, ex-servicemen from across the country on Sunday began protests in Delhi.

The retired military personnel who are protesting over the delay in implementation of the scheme also said that a relay hunger strike will also take place at Jantar Mantar on Monday.

For the implementation of One Rank One Pension scheme, ex-servicemen have reportedly signed a petition in blood which will be handed over to the President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

OROP seeks to ensure that a uniform pension is paid to the defence personnel retiring in the same rank with the same length of service, irrespective of their date of retirement.

Close to 22 lakh ex-servicemen and over six lakh war widows stand to be the immediate beneficiaries of the scheme.

A group of ex-servicemen earlier met Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to convey to him their concern over the much-delayed 'One Rank One Pension' scheme.

"The talks were positive and he listened to our concern. He said he will continue the deliberation on the issue," Maj Gen Satbir Singh (Retd) said after the meeting.

Even though the government has said it is committed to implementing OROP, there has been no official clarification on why the scheme is delayed. Manohar Parrikar has repeatedly said the government has completed all formalities and OROP will be implemented soon.

OneIndia News

(With inputs from agencies)