Disabled civilians with less than 10-yr service to be paid service element of pension

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 30

In a major relief to civilian disability pensioners, the government has clarified that pre-2006 disabled personnel shall also be entitled to receive the “service element” of disability pension irrespective of the length of service.

This would significantly enhance their pension and they would also be paid arrears for the past about 14 years.

This will benefit thousands of disability pensioners of the various Central Armed Police Forces as well as organisations such as Coast Guard, General Reserve Engineering Force and Railways.

Disability pension consists of two parts — the service experience, which pertains to the length of service rendered and the disability element, which is associated with the quantum of disability. 

Prior to 2006, the disability pensioners receiving pension under the Central Civil Services Extraordinary Pension Rules required 10 years of qualifying service to earn the service element.

In 2010, on the lines of the defence services, the minimum qualifying service for service element of disability pension was abrogated with retrospective effect from 2006. However, the disabled retirees who were released from service prior to 2006 were not paid the service element due to a grey area in the policy.

In 2019, a disabled retiree from the Coast Guard, Rajesh Dahiya, approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court against denial of service element to him and he sought directions to the Department of Pension and Pensioners’ Welfare (DoPPW) from the Court for a decision on his detailed representations to the department to clarify the issue on release of service element to pre-2006 cases. 

The bench of Justice Harsimran Singh Sethi had then directed DoPPW to take a final decision in the matter within a period of three months. The department had later informed the petitioner that it was looking into the matter and needed some more time.

The DoPPW has now issued orders to all ministries and has directed the release of service element to pre-2006 disability pensioners with less than 10 years of service with financial effect and arrears from January 1, 2006. 

Experts say that this would come as a boon to many CAPF personnel who were paid a meagre disability element which was not sufficient to cater to even basic needs.

An officer well versed with the subject added that the minimum monthly disability pension at current rates admissible to affected retirees would now be Rs 18,000 per month.