Eight yrs on, Territorial Army gets benefits of assured career scheme

Vijay Mohan

Advertisement

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 25

Full-time Territorial Army (TA) personnel now have a reason to cheer. Almost eight years after the Modified Assured Career Progression Scheme (MACP) was made applicable to all defence personnel, orders have finally been issued to extend the benefit to TA personnel also. The TA has 40,000 troops.

The MACP was implemented on the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission (SPC) with effect from September 2008, wherein it was provided that personnel would be granted promotional pay and allowances of the next pay grade on stagnation after eight, 16 and 24 years of service, if not actually promoted.

Although the gazette notification or the Special Army Instruction (SAI) issued after the SPC did not carry any prohibition of grant of MACP to TA personnel on the fulfilment of the criterion, such a stipulation was introduced while issuing the administrative instructions for the implementation of MACP in the defence services in 2011, thereby denying MACP to TA personnel.

A committee of experts tasked by the Defence Minister to look into pension and service disputes and reduction of litigation had also asked the government to resolve the anomaly. The panel observed there was no denial of MACP to TA personnel in the gazette notification issued after the Cabinet approval and also in the SAI issued by the MoD. The panel further recorded that the SAI issued by the Central Government itself made it abundantly clear that the scheme was fully applicable to TA.

Though many commissioned officers of TA are part-time volunteers, most TA personnel below officer ranks are full-time members and as per regulations are considered part of the regular Army when embodied. They also receive pay and allowances on a par with the regular wings of the defence services during the period of embodiment or mobilisation.