But there is also an uneasiness – have we as a people burnt our bridges by our protracted apathy? The well-being of the armed forces is a time-honoured imperative. To quote from Kautilya's letter addressed to Emperor Chandragupta Maurya apearing in'Arthashastra' documented over 2500 years ago (picked up from the internet )
'The Mauryan soldier does not the Royal treasuries enrich nor the Royal granaries fill. He does not carry out trade and commerce nor produce scholars,... He does not do any of this directly. The soldier only and merely ensures that the tax, tribute and revenue collectors travel forth and return safely; that the farmer tills, harvests, stores and markets his produce unafraid ........ Pataliputra reposes each night in peaceful comfort, O King, secure in the belief that the distant borders of Magadha are inviolate and the interiors are safe and secure, thanks only to the Mauryan Army standing vigil with naked swords and eyes peeled for action, day and night, in weather fair and foul, all eight praharas, quite unmindful of personal discomfort and hardship .... To this man, O Rajadhiraja, you owe a debt: please, therefore, see to it, suo moto, that the soldier continuously gets his dues in every form and respect ... for he is not likely to ask for them himself. The day the soldier has to demand his dues will be a sad day for Magadha for then, on that day, you will have lost all moral sanction to be King!' - Nair
Your article on rediff news of the 8th ult. throws up disturbing questions which require a sincere desire to address - which if ‘intelligence’ can would the intelligent do ? The general disinclination of our beurocracy to spent time and effort, at the expense of personal considerations, to issues that require the type of commitment, is a part of public lore. Intelligence that fails on the altar of imperatives that it is bound to devote its atmost efforts and energies to accomplish, do not merit the regard that your article allows. The Indian soldier , in this regard, accomplishes the imperatives presented to him far better as has been proved time and again.
Soldiery, by the very definition of its calling, foregoes the right to be regarded intelligent. At the same time it is a moot question as to whether Mohanchand Gandhi would have achieved much in Idi Amin’s Uganda. The human society is far from comprehending or accepting ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’. An honoured and rancour-free armed forces, therefore, is a necessity which market forces or beurocracy can disregard at the peril of our nationhood.
In the light of what has been stated above, the unprecedented expression of discontent on the part of the COS was the culmination of a slowly burning fuze which took 60 years ( to the credit of our Armed Forces ) to happen. It would therefore, do well for those to whom it is addressed to sit up and take notice. With regards, Lt Col(retd) Vijay Nair
DEAR FRIENDS, I HAVE STRONG REASONS TO BELIEVE THAT :" OUR BEING SUBJECT TO THE ARMY ACT,THE ARMY ACT & RULES, & ARMY RULES,HAS BEEN THE ROOT CAUSE OF OUR SUBJUGATION,ENSLAVEMENT,DENUDATION, DEGREDATION & OUR PRESENT PLIGHT/MISERY". WHY?? BECAUSE THESE ACTS & RULES WERE ENACTED FOR "THE SLAVES" OF HER MAGESTY'S COLNEYS, IN THE TIMES OF 'THE EAST INDIA COMPANY'. WE AS ARMED FORCES ARE NOT CITIZENS OF A FREE REPUBLIC/OR A DEMOCRATIC NATION, DESPITE THE FACT THAT WE PLAYED THE BIGGEST ROLE IN OUR FREEDOM STRUGGLES & HAVE/ARE/WILL BE THE MAIN RELIABLE FORCE/SOURCE TO SAFE GUARD OUR FREEDOM,SOVEREIGNTY,AS ALSO MAINTAIN OUR UNITY AGAINST EXTERNAL/INTERNAL AGGRESSIONS, FLOODS, FAMINS & CRISIS.YET, IRONICALLY, WE OURSELVES ARE IN "ETERNALBONDAGE". WE HAVE NO FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS. NO FREEDOM OF SPEECH, FREEDOM OF PRESS, EVEN TODAY. WE DARE NOT OPPOSE THE RULING GOVT, ITS HIGH HANDEDNESS, ITS DICTATORIAL & MONARCHIAL OPPRESSIONS, POLICIES, & EVIL DESIGNS. TILL WE FIGHT & GET FREEDOM FROM THE CLUTCHES OF THE ARMY/AIR FORCE/NAVAL ACTS & RULES, WE WILL NOT HAVE THE PRIVILEGE " TO MARCH, HONORABLY, ON TO INDIA GATE, LIKE THE IAS,IFS, IPS & OTHERS, TO DEMAND OUR RIGHTS, AS THEY DID." TILL THEN, ANY ACT OF THIS NATURE WILL BE TERMED AS A "MUTINY". I DARE SAY, IN OUR PRESENT STATE/PLIGHT, IT IS NOT HER MAGESTY WHO IS THE OPPRESSOR, BUT OUR BUREAUCRACY,OUR GOVT, & MOST IMPORTANTLY,OUR OWN "SERVICES'ACTS & RULES" WHO ARE OUR TYRANTS. IS OUR SUPREME CDR LISTENING? COL SK SURI,RETD
these pliticians and babus are smart and these defence guys are fools.... these pliticians and babus have learnt from pakistan and they are trying to ensure that the powers of defence forces are stripped off completely so that there is no coup...but these foolish defence guys will never learn because there brains are in there knees... in this country u have to snatch ur rights...nobody will give u anything on platter....moreover, their service chiefs have no guts at all... i dont feel safe in their hands any more... if they cant fight for themselves how i can i believe they can fight for us... i would rather send my son to police than army...
Re: Faujis are fools!!!
by Satan on Oct 03, 2008 09:07 PM
dont want to abuse u, but suffice to say that god & soldiers are only remembered in times of need.
these pliticians and babus are smart and these defence guys are fools.... these pliticians and babus have learnt from pakistan and they are trying to ensure that the powers of defence forces are stripped off completely so that there is no coup...but these foolish defence guys will never learn because there brains are in there knees... in this country u have to snatch ur rights...nobody will give u anything on platter....moreover, their service chiefs have no guts at all... i dont feel safe in their hands any more... if they cant fight for themselves how i can i believe they can fight for us... i would rather send my son to police than army...
General Joshi has presented the woes of India’s Defence personnel whether serving or pensioners in his hard hitting column aptly. He is forthright in his observations that the salaries of the Defence and Security Forces are decided by civilian Bureaucrats who hardly have the insight or appraisal of the conditions under which our Jawans live and work. I wish to add to his views that so far border protection is concerned there are 4 other BORDER Guarding Forces namely the Border Security Force, Indo Tibetan Border Police, Assam Rifles and the S.S.B. These are deployed to guard the borders with Pakistan Bangladesh China Mynamar Bhutan Nepal respectively. Obviously these Forces personnel have to work in unison with the Armed Forces day in and day out as the WATCH DOGS for the country in fairly large inhospitable areas. Just like the Defence Forces the plight of the officers, JCOs and the other ranks in these Forces is no better for that matter. These forces have no organized forum to express their grievances. There is a wide spread discontentment amongst all ranks in these forces too. Most of the personnel were just waiting to complete mandatory 20 years period to be eligible to earn pension. In the leading Para Military Force the senior officers expressed their helplessness in view of large number of applications submitted by Non Commissioned Officers and Jawans. The reasons expressed by these soldiers were very hard duties at the borders and poor pay structure offered to
What is the constitutional status of Armed Forces? Have you ever bothered to find out?
Top Brass of Armed forces are to be blamed for the ill treatment.
Indian Politics is pressure group politics. You never created one so you dont matter.
Have you ever bother to check as to how many soldiers casr their votes through so called postal wallot.
Of late you have accepted voting of Armed forces at their place od posting. Who will bother about the soldiers back home?
How many people know that that they can vote at their place of posting?
How many soldiers are registered as voters at their place of posting.
If you dont do the constitutionally legal things and leave yourself to someone's mercy then you will get this treatment.
Armed forces in a democracy comes next to the politiocal bosses. You are not ready to accept that.
How many Retd Generals have got together to form a political parties and exert pressure on the govt.
It is misnomer to accept that independence was won through peaceful means. It is propagated that way so that youth is kept under control.
INC made a contract that they will support British Govt and sent Indian Army overseas only if they Gurantee Independence to India. 1.60,000 soldiers died in second world war. No mention of their sacrifice. Armed forces has got independence to this country and they must believe like that before any one believes.
General Ashok Joshi, COME AND LEAD THE POLITICAL PARTY
Re: YOU GET WHAT YOU DESERVE
by Vishwamitra Singh on Sep 10, 2008 04:41 PM
Armed Forces must support an Presidential Form of Govt with a More Federal Set-up.
Which is this national newspaper which carried this story against the services? All service personnel and patriotic Indians must stop reading it from this moment.
We as a nation have very little respect for the armed forces per se. We accept them to accept the hand out the nation give them meekly. Which is so unfair just because they dont go on strike and damage national property. Where as their cointerparts will ransak if their demands are not met. So does than mean we only respond to violance and vote banks. Thats congressi national character for you. For 60 years they have guarded our borders but we have no gratitude for them. We can see their perthetic uniforms compared to our poor neighbor Pak which have better ones issued. When we dont care even for basic requirements then we have no reason to balem if the younger generation does not want to join the forces as there is no respect or security.
There is some concern, if articles such as this one are anything to go by, over parity of benefits for people in uniform vis-a-vis those for civilian employees. It is surprising that no section of the print or online media has ever bothered to establish a pattern over time, of personnel in uniform being denied due benefits. Just consider the following: *The issue of denial of rank pay to armed forces officers arising out of IV CPC has still not been resolved by the appropriate authority. *The non-retrospective implementation of phase I of the AV Singh Committee Report, which was formed as a result of the V CPC report, deprived thousands of armed forces officers of benefits of promotion as recommended by the report. *The defence HQs have been totally silent on the rejection of their demand, by VI CPC, on parity between pre/post 01 Jan 06 pensions necessitated by the introduction of MSP/Grade Pay post 01 Jan 06. This is inspite of a precedence for the introduction of such parity in the report of V CPC.
