Dear Brig Kamboj,
1. After a long time on the IESM network, you have circulated an excellent e-mail sent by Brig SP Sinha. At the outset I would like to complement Brig Sinha for placing in correct perspective the entire issues on which the foundation of the IESM was seemingly laid. My sincere thanks to Brig Kamboj for choosing to circulate this important e-mail from Brig Sinha for the benefit of the swelling population of the IESM. Whilst the e-mail ID of Brig Sinha was not available in your forwarding e-mail, it contained the landline # and I seized the opportunity of contacting him on it to pass my complements, as also to obtain his e-mail ID.
2. Reading such an e-mail, may I please confirm the receipt of my e-mail to you, Gen Raj Kadyan, Gen Surjit Singh, etc of Wednesday, 08 Apr. It was in response to Gen Kadyan's e-mail on Voting Advisory, but I find it not circulated to all members of the IESM, todate. You may please take a re-look to decide on its circulation among the larger body of IESM. What we the like minded members of the IESM are anxious about is the composite core agenda which has the highest prospects of success.
3. In that context the lead given by the President Navy Foundation, Delhi Charter, appears to be most pragmatic, to bite what he (and his support group) can chew. He has quite appropriately created the support group/facilities for the purpose. I don't think he has attempted to ride the "Tiger", he cannot dismount. Isn't that the way IESM too to proceed??
Warm regards.
- R Adm Sushil Ramsay.
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From: spsinha_1 .
To: Kamboj Chander
Cc: rajkadyan@yahoo.com
Sent: Friday, April 10, 2009 11:30 PM
Subject: IESM: The Way Ahead
Dear Gen Raj Kadiyan and Members of the Core Group,
I am putting across a revirw of the progress of IESM, as i view it, and my thoughts on the way ahead for consideration by the core group.
Sicerely
SP Sinha
............
Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement: The Way Ahead
The Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement (IESM) has come a long way since its inception in the middle of last year(2008)
in the wake of the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission. To begin with it highlighted four core issues as under-
a. One Rank One Pension (OROP).
b. Constitution of a separate Pay Commission for the armed forces.
c. Review of warrant of precedence.
d. Lateral induction of service personnel into central,state services and public sector undertakings
As the movement progressed, it was decided to leave three issues other than OROP to the domain of service chiefs, who were separately pleading for them with the MOD through the COSC.There was also a lurking fear that the IESM may inadvertently embarass the serving chiefs by articulating its demands publically and giving an impression of politicising the services.
When petitioning the MOD to address the anomalies in the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission failed to elicit any positive response, it was decided to give voice to verterans grievances by peaceful public protests at Delhi and state capitals like Banglore, Chennai, Lucknow,Chandigarh, where there is a large concentration of veterans. The protests were held peacefully without causing any inconvenience to the general public. Regretably, there were attempts at Delhi to coerce and disrupt the movement by taking veterans, who had assembled at the Boat Club lawns, into temporary custody on the pretext of violating Section 144 of IPC.
At this stage it was decided to resort to indefinite relay fast followed by Dharna at Jantar Mantar to draw attention of the public to the injustice done to ex-servicemen by the Sixth Pay Commission in fixing their pension. From now on the focus shifted to just one demand - OROP. As days passed by, the movement spread to many state capitals and satellite towns, bringing a large number to its fold. Four former service chiefs and many army commanders and their equivalents in the Navy and the Airforce joined the movement as full members or gave their moral support.
The coup-de grace was delivered when a group of veterans from the three services returned their medals to the President; the numbers soon snowballed into thousands. This was the defining moment; the medals are not only recognition of soldiers services to the nation, but epitomises the value system of the armed forces. The syombolism of the act was profound; it marked a breach in the military covenant - 'in which service personnel are called upon to make personal sacrifices and in return are guaranteed fair treatment by the state, to be valued and respected as individuals, and that they and their families will be sustained and rewarded by commensurate terms and conditions of service.'
The media belatedly took note of the simmering discontent, wrote editorials and published articles highlighting the bureucratic insensitiveness in dealing with the armed forces.The signals were picked up by political parties; the leader of the opposition, Shri LK advani, belatedly visited the ex-servicemen at Jantar Mantar and promised to address their grievances, which was later reflected in BJP manifesto.The Communists have also declared their support to OROP.
The Way Forward
The movement has spread and gained support of a very large section of ex-servicemen and informed public opinion. It has developed its own dynamics. At this stage a question may be asked: "How long should the movement last? " Here the dilemma faced by Gen Colin Powell during Op'Desert Storm' in recommending when to end the fighting after Gen Schwarzkoff's forces had evicted Iraqis from Kuwait comes to mind. In formulating his recommendation, Gen Powell was influenced by the theme of a book, 'Every War Must End' by Frank Ikle, which postulated that governments after starting a war often lose sight of ending it and the fighting often continues long past the point where a rational calculation would indicate that the war should be ended.
I am NOT suggesting that the movement be ended; it has only just begun and the objectives have yet to be achieved. But should a strand of the movement like protest at Jantar Mantar continue open ended? Do we want to make our protest at Jantar Mantar a permanent fixture? My own gut feeling is that our extended presence at Jantar Mantar has reached a point where it is of diminishing value.May I therefore suggest that the core group give a careful thought to the question, "How far to prolong the protest at Jantar Mantar and when to end it and how?
SPSinha
Brig (Retd.)
272-C, Sector-29,
Noida 201303
Tele: 0120-2450316
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