Partly addressing a long-pending demand, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh approved a proposal for extension of “resettlement facilities” to cadets who are invalidated from military training on medical grounds due to the causes attributable to or aggravated by the training, the Defence Ministry said on March 16. However, this does not address the aspect of disability pension, which has been under consideration.
“This decision has been taken as the cadets join military academies at a young age with the intention of joining as officers in the armed forces, and show a commitment to serve the nation in uniform, but are unfortunate in being invalidated,” a Ministry statement said. “Since decades, cadets/their parents have been demanding such resettlement opportunities.”
As per the present rules, a cadet is treated as an officer only after commissioning. Every year, about 10 to 20 cadets are invalidated on medical grounds due to causes attributable to or aggravated by military training.
In order to further enhance the opportunities for such cadets, Mr. Singh has cleared another proposal of the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare, allowing extension of benefits of schemes run by Directorate General Resettlement, the Ministry said. “This will help 500 cadets who have been boarded out on medical grounds to access the schemes and ensure a brighter future for them. Future cadets in similar condition would also get the same benefits,” it added.
In August 2021, Mr. Singh had informed Parliament that the three Service headquarters have forwarded a proposal for the grant of disability pension to cadets medically boarded out during training from military academies, and that the proposal was “under consideration” at the Ministry.
Cadets who are injured and invalidated out on medical grounds from training academies, attributed to or aggravated by military training, are granted ex-gratia, and medical treatment of such injured cadets is provided at military hospitals, the written reply in the Lok Sabha had stated.
The Defence Minister’s Committee of Experts in 2015 had recommended grant of disability pension at officers’ rates, without the ‘Military Service Pay’ element. “The cadets undergoing training do not get pay and allowances (Salary) but are given a monthly stipend hence the recommendations were not accepted by the Government as successive Pay Commissions (6th and 7th) did not recommend the same due to technical requirements such as amendment of recruitment rules and pension rules,” the reply had stated.
