DISABILITY - NEW RULES ISSUED BY THE GOVERNMENT ON CASUALITY PENSIONARY AWARDS
The Mod DESW letter No 16(3)2023/D(pen/Pol)Vol-ll dt 21 Sep 2023 containing New Rules at Annex 1 to this letter, can soon be of deep concern for those of us who get disabled while in service and got Disability Pension (Disability Element plus The Service Element) on retirement, both exempted from Income Tax under the Income Tax Act - 1962 as amended.
Please read the MoD letter dt 21 Sep 2023 which also includes host of policy letters issued by Army HQ from time to time since 1946. This letter is accessible since placed in our web portal and can be downloaded or read on this link "RULES CAUSALITY PANSIONARY AWARDS"
While the rules on the subject issued by the Govt describes the types of disability as hither to fore, under various circumstances under which the disability occurs, but includes a new category called Impairment Relief. We are incorporating the related extracts of the said rules with specific reference to the New Category as in succeeding paras, which in our understanding covers virtually most of the types of disability that may occur during service.
(i) Impairment Relief. Impairment Relief is a monthly disability compensation, Calculated as a defined percentage of the last reckonable emoluments, awarded to Armed Forces personnel who are retired or discharged from service voluntarily or otherwise with a disability sustained under circumstances accepted as Category ‘B’ or ‘C’ and assessed not less than 20 per cent. ‘Impairment Relief' shall hereinafter replace the term ‘Disability Element’ in as far as disability compensation to Armed Forces personnel who are retired or discharged from service. This is not a pension and shall cease upon the demise of the recipient.
(j) Liberalized Impairment Relief. Liberalized Impairment Relief is a monthly disability compensation, calculated as a defined percentage of the last reckonable emoluments, awarded to Armed Forces personnel who are retired or discharged from service voluntarily or otherwise with a disability sustained under circumstances accepted as Category ‘D’ and assessed not less than 20 per cent. ‘Liberalized Impairment Relief shall hereinafter replace the term ‘Liberalized Disability Element’ in as far as disability compensation to Armed Forces personnel who are retired or discharged from service. This is not a pension and shall cease upon the demise of the recipient.
(k) War Injury Relief. War Injury Relief is a monthly disability compensation, calculated as a defined percentage of the last reckonable emoluments, awarded to Armed Forces personnel who are retired or discharged from service voluntarily or otherwise with a disability sustained under circumstances accepted as Category ‘E’ and assessed not less than 20 per cent. ‘War Injury Relief shall hereinafter replace the term ‘War Injury Element’ in as far as disability compensation to Armed Forces personnel who are retired or discharged from service. This is not a pension and shall cease upon the demise of the recipient.
(l) Constant Attendance Allowance. A Constant Attendance Allowance is a monthly allowance (revised from time to time), paid in addition to Disability Pension/ Liberalized Disability Pension/ War injury Pension or Impairment Relief/ Liberalized Impairment Relief/ War injury Relief, only to Armed Forces personnel whose degree of impairment has been assessed at 100 per cent. This is not a pension and shall cease upon the demise of the recipient.
(m) Capitalized Impairment Relief/ Liberalized Impairment Relief/ War Injury Relief. A Capitalized Impairment Relief/ Liberalized Impairment Relief/ War Injury Relief (to be hereinafter referred in short as ‘Capitalized Impairment Relief in these rules) is the commuted present value of the future payout of an accepted Impairment Relief/ Liberalized Impairment Relief/ War injury Relief calculated by adopting the current commutation tables. The provision of Broad Banding shall not apply for calculating the percentage of impairment for the award of ‘Capitalized Impairment Relief. The terms Capitalized Impairment Relief/ Liberalized Impairment Relief/ War Injury Relief shall replace the terms Lump-Sum Compensation in Lieu of Disability Element/ Liberalized Disability Element/ War injury Element..
REMARKS - What it means and why this new category has emerged, is left to member's judgement. The effect of these rules will only be known when implementation instructions are issued by the concerned offices which should be soon following the said MoD letter. Whether this applies to the new cases after 21 Sep 2023 or to the existing cases as well is another question, the catch word hereinafter could mean any thing in these paras.
There are enumerable speculations but we will refrain from mentioning at this stage.
It is, however, known that the Income Tax Act does not include the new term, i.e Impairment Relief (Which is not classified as Pension) for 100% IT Relief as is applicable to Disabiulity pension for the Armed Forces. 
Let us wait and watch the next step by MoD or the Service HQs and its impact on the risks which we all had been taking in our service without a wink. As regards the Financial Impact on the disabled soldiers it will be substantial causing a reduction by over 31 to 32 percent of the current emoluments.
NOTE - We are placing the remarks and comments received from various veterans on email or on social media under comments below for the information of the environment. However the views expressed there in are that of the subscribers and not of this portal in any manner.
PRESS NOTE - ISSUED BY THE ALL INDIA EX-SERVICEMEN WELFARE ASSOCIATION(REGD) - CHANDIGARH DT 05 OCT 2023 on the MoD NEW RULES is accessible by CLICKING HERE
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Following comments are reproduced, please treat them as their personal views on the subject ,
ReplyDeleteNKD
Quote..
On Thu, Oct 5, 2023 at 10:04 PM Vijaya Kumar wrote:
It's waging a war against officers (mostly senior officers of the rank of Col, Brig, Maj Gen & Lt Gen) who were drawing disability element/war injury /liberalized pension on retirement after attaining superannuation and claiming tax free benefits for both Service and disability element of pension.
The DAD/ FAD officials of def ministry, CGDA, PCDA hasn't taken kindly of veterans filing WP in the apex court against taxing disability pensions of above cat of officers in which apex court stay order is in force.
In a fit of fury, these officials, somehow cajoled CAG to place a report in parliament against such officers which immediately triggered issuing the new ER policy 2023.
You have observed one thing. Their main aim is to remove disability/war injury element from officers who retired on attaining superannuation. For the above, they superceded many of their letters and given a new name to disability element as impairment relief. Aim being, impairment relief will not be considered as pension and hence no tax relief.
The new ER policy is applicable on or after 21 September, but certain provisions like change of disability into impairment and supercededing all previous government letters may
impact former veterans.
Reliably learnt,more such letters are on the pipeline especially workout table for impairment relief etc. Nothing can be said what's in store with the Government. They are pushing such letters through DMA , headed by CDS, who is just a silent spectator.
On Thu, Oct 5, 2023, 19:42 KS Rao wrote:
Is IT department holding back the assessment of IT returns of pensioners with disability pension?
Mine is pending for nearly 80 days!
Major SK Jain to preavsmajorsltcdrssqnldrs, Armed
ReplyDeleteNew disability pension policy for soldiers will discourage young Indians from joining military
Col H Padmanabhan wrote
ReplyDeleteThough the MoD conveyed verbally that these orders would be applicable only to pers who would retire from 21 Sep 2023, the policy letter does not say so, If Disability Element gets replaced with Impairment Relief and since it is no more a PENSION, the tax exemption may go (may be we get exemption of for the impairment relief) and also we may not get DR for this IR since it is not a pension. Judicial intervention seems to be the only solution. Else, political movement, Congress has already come out strongly. A few offrs are already preparing to file a Writ in SC. Even congress party is seeking legal advice, Hope for the best.
Though the MoD conveyed verbally that these orders would be applicable only to pers who would retire from 21 Sep 2023, the policy letter does not say so, If Disability Element gets replaced with Impairment Relief and since it is no more a PENSION, the tax exemption may go (may be we get exemption of for the impairment relief) and also we may not get DR for this IR since it is not a pension. Judicial intervention seems to be the only solution. Else, political movement, Congress has already come out strongly. A few offrs are already preparing to file a Writ in SC. Even congress party is seeking legal advice, Hope for the best.
RECEIVED ON WHATSAPP
ReplyDelete[ 05/10/2023] Col Anil Taneja: Forwarded as received in another group.For consideration please
Quietly and surreptitiously, many rules and 'privileges' which were existing for the military have been diluted or done away with.
Or interpretations done to defeat the spirit of the provisions.
So now I suppose soldiers can refuse HA or difficult area postings or assignments as these may cause "impairments" or injuries.
A soldier may refuse to play hockey.
Or be in the boxing team where injury can occur.
A fracture now is more of your own problem and not that of the service..
A permanent non- battle injury/disability in the line of duty means 'thank you, but just too bad'.
Consider an unfortunate co-driver who gets boarded out after the MT accident for no fault of his.
And as we know that rules can be changed to go into retrospect effect.
So can the soldier nullify his enlistment oath (serve any where land sea, air—and obey orders of seniors even at the peril of his life.--) by the same yardstick?
Because of fear of "non - attributable" injuries. And no tax benefits to boot.
Recollect, years back --
*a soldier proceeding on CL
*while on CL
* on rejoining from CL was considered to be on duty for injuries sustained.
We have messed up the entire gamut of 'protection' for soldiers.
I think for the same privileges and protection/Retirement at 60 Yrs/pay/postings/ emoluments and allowances-- the civil Naukri and Central Police Organisations are better placed than Armed Forces.
Fire and forget as far as soldiers are concerned.
Hence it is not very far when India loses a war.
Back to Project Achhe Din ?
It's like throwing out the baby with the bath water.
Remedy and identify the problem if you feel that malingers are exploiting the system rather than abolishing the entire system itself .
Who is to blame Is it our own hierarchy which has to say- 'Lay Off' and remain mum.
AS RECEIVED ON WHATSAPP
ReplyDeleteA VERY WELL WRITTEN COMMENT ON NEW DISABILITY PENSION POLICY
MoD's Sado Masochistic Tendencies - Merriam Webster's Dictionary defines Sado Masochism in the following way: "Masochism refers to the enjoyment of experiencing pain while sadism refers to the enjoyment of inflicting pain on someone else. Interestingly, both masochism and sadism are eponymous words."
Fail to understand why are knickers of both serving personnel & veterans in a twist by latest 21 September 2023 MoD diktat, called Entitlement Rules 2023 (ER 2023) & Guide to Medical Officers, GMO 2023 (GMO 2023) about Disability Pension. Sorry new kid on the block is called 'Impairment Relief'. Must commend bureaucrats, both in uniform and in civil clothes, for their dexterity in coming up with coining now terms. Take a bow.
Ever since CBDT Circular 13/2019 dtd 24.6.2019 removing income tax exemption on disability pension this macabre letter was in the pipeline. Then too social media was agog how disabled soldiers would be put to a disadvantage & said circular was akin to 'cutting your nose to spite your face'. MoD was miffed about rogue star ranks misusing provisions of disability pension to 'acquire disability' just prior to superannuation, to earn extra out of their disability pension. This cat among the pigeons was let loose in December 2014 by the then DGAFMS in a letter dated 16.12.2014 to Defence Secretary, MoD where he had bawled about this. No one knows what action was taken by DGAFMS or MoD against such devious senior officers. But do bank upon civil bureaucrats to twist your tail once you hand them such a complaint on a platter. MoD couldn't care less that a large majority of genuinely disabled soldiers would be put at a gross disadvantage in their attempt to sort out delinquent star ranks. In fact PCDA (P) Allahabad implemented & recovered income tax arrears in one full swoop for disabled veterans in disability pension for February 2020 crediting only Rs 100. Only after hue & cry by veterans & well meaning folks pointing out that there was a stay on CBDT Circular was full disability pension restored on 3.3.2020. Even now this removal of income tax exemption on disability pension case in Supreme Court is sub judice & waiting to be adjudicated. That doesn't in any way stop Department of Ex-servicemen Welfare (DESW), MoD in bringing out this twisted, contorted & vicious letter.
Essentially Entitlement Rules 2023 & Guide to Medical Officers (GMO) 2023 is a desperate attempt at cutting down disablement pay out & leave serving and veterans to their own devices. Sample this - a one time pay out euphemistically labelled Impairment Relief or Capitalisation of Impairment Relief would be granted to get around Disability Element of Disability Pension. No recurring expenditure. No thought about how a given disability can deteriorate in ensuing years for a disabled personnel. Although close to 40% of defence pension budget goes to service close to 25% civilian defence employees. A well entrenched union will not tolerate any tinkering with defence civilian entitlement.
Contd
PRESS NOTE - ISSUED BY THE ALL INDIA EX-SERVICEMEN WELFARE ASSOCIATION(REGD) - CHANDIGARH DT 05 OCT 2023 on the MoD NEW RULES is accessible by CLICKING THE LINK available in the above Body Text of this post or Copy Paste this link in your browser - https://1drv.ms/b/s!AnEHv3ufLTX1giUffQ5a2nA2lk2a?e=PyHwNh
ReplyDeleteThe sequence of policies for veterans and Armed Forces ,since 2014, indicates that there is someone in the present govt set up, who wants to screw the happiness of Veterans and Armed Forces personnel. Despite adverse comments from higher Judiciary on many matters, the process of tinkering with existing policies of Veterans and Armed Forces Personnel continues. We all know the causes of this unhappiness but avoid to directly blame. Unless we treat the cause, this Sadistic and Masochism will continue. And the cause is your "Vote".
ReplyDelete