Forces see ‘red’ over fresh attempt at ‘false equivalence’ with civil officers

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 8

Six months after the Ministry of Defence decided on promotions, status and functioning of its civilian officers, the matter has raised its head again after the armed forces have conveyed their displeasure about a ‘fresh attempt’ to create ‘false equivalence’ between military officers and civilians, saying the latter are support staff.

Top sources have confirmed that the matter is in the notice of Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

The civilian officers are under the Armed Forces Headquarters Civil Services (AFHQ-CS). Their cadre–some 3,000-strong now--was created in 1968 as a support cadre comprising direct recruits at lower administrative level to the MoD. They are not from the Indian Administrative Service or allied services.

On January 4, the Ministry of Defence, after instructions from Sitharaman, issued a letter saying the “cadre restructuring (re-jig of posts) of the AFHQ, as approved by the Union Cabinet, will be implemented. Designations will be created in consultation with the armed forces. Local designations assigned to armed forces and civilian officers stood withdrawn”.

The MoD in two successive letters on May 25 and June 18 released a promotion list of the AFHQ, however, with a caveat: “Promotions are provisional and may undergo change, if required, after finalisation of additional designations and posts in consultation with service headquarters (nomenclature for the three armed forces)”.

Sources said additional higher posts of AFHQ cadre–who are supposed to only support in administrative work--is another attempt at ‘false equivalence’ with the military. The armed forces have questioned the creation of so many additional ranks at the senior level--seven Principal Directors (deemed equal to Brigadier) and 36 Directors (deemed just below Colonel).

The Army’s note on the subject has termed the new posts ‘without any functional requirement given by user (Army)’. Already 89 posts are surplus, says the Army note.

Sources said it had been conveyed if AFHQ cadre had to be given a status, it had to be as per the warrant of precedence (WoP) issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs. In that a Major General is equal to a Joint Secretary and a Brigadier is equal to a Deputy Director General. So if AFHQ cadre gets a status they cannot just be equated with the forces but with all other services, including the IAS and others.

Interestingly, the norms of equivalence between armed forces and AFHQ issued on October 18, 2016 by the MoD were withdrawn in January this year. The forces had protested after this letter, and a committee was set up. The Tribune in a series of three articles in October 2017 had highlighted the issue.

In the October 2016 letter, the AFHQ cadre had given itself a status higher than mandated. It had equated a Major General (Rear Admiral in the Navy and Air Vice-Marshal in the IAF) with a Principal Director at the AFHQ cadre. A Brigadier (Commodore/Air Commodore) was equated with a Director, a Colonel/Captain/Group Captain with a Joint Director.