Promotions, status and tough conditions
Grade pay, pay bands, MSP, actual compensation, CTC, CTG, CTN, transactional and relational benefits… the story of the sixth pay commission continues unabated for many military officers. There is another issue that raises its head time and again: slow promotions and lowered status of a military officer.
Enter AVS 1. They make an officer a Lt. Colonel/ Wg. Commander at 13 years. Never mind that you still end up as a company commander. No other army in the world (maybe barring some nondescript African nation) grants you ranks so liberally and at such a fast clip. Cadre inflation, sought as a solution to the problem of slow promotions by the top brass, has exacerbated the degradation of military ranks in this country. Post-independence, most of the military training schools were headed by Colonels or Brigadiers. Today, they have a three-star General at every training school.
Frankly, I wonder if a Lt. Colonel is going to stay in the kitchen during a mess party, what difference does his equivalence to a DGP or IG or DIG going to make on his status? The SCPC might have pushed the dagger a little deeper, but the dagger was stuck in, in the first place, by the organisation itself. It is a truism that the status and proliferation of ranks are directly linked; greater proliferation of ranks leads to their lowered status.
In any case, the comparison with the civil services is an “apples to oranges” comparison, which itself underplays the unique nature of military ranks. The harping to the past, when the military was paramount among all the professions, is akin to that feudal Maharajah who is unwilling to accept that he doesn’t rule the place anymore. He might be fooling himself into delusions of past glory by looking at a few courtiers and his palace, partly in ruins, and a faux deferential attitude from some of his former subjects.
Things change with time and economic strength, not military might, governs the nation and society today. The government services themselves, including the IAS or the IFS, are not at the top of the pile of career choices today. It is a fact that the military [and other government services] has to accept and live with, of a poorer cousin to the corporate world in material rewards.
Another issue that raises its head is the tough working conditions of the military. Isn’t it for real?
It is but ask the guy sitting in the most cozy office in New York. Even he will say that his working conditions are tough. [Don't start seething with anger here. Read the full post.] This is not to belittle the tough service conditions for the average military officer, but to depict that it is more about attitude than the actual conditions.
Most service officers look at tough conditions as a challenge, and not as a burden. It is more about finding people with the right attitude or inculcating the right attitude in them while in the organisation. The working conditions are tough not only due to the external elements; the routine working conditions are worsened due to an obsequious and servile culture that is underpinned by zero-error syndrome. Why do military officers prefer active duty field conditions to what they derogatorily refer as “peacetime soldiering”? Because the internal dissonances, inconsistencies and cultural repugnances in salubrious cantonments are knottier to bear than the external vagaries of terrain and climate in field areas.
The propensity to blame the neta-babu nexus [and the pay commission] for the lowered status and tough working conditions in the military reminds me of the situation a few years back, when all the internal problems in the country were blamed on the ubiquitous “foreign hand”. It takes greater courage [moral, not physical] to introspect and identify the internal reasons that have led to this despairing state of the services. But have you ever heard of a cat belling itself?
In any case, the strongest message on what ails the services is given by the service officers themselves, when they do not want their children to join the services. These officers are the loudest messengers for the military. Their actions speak louder than their words; crying for internal reform and restructuring.
@pragmatic
Thanks for the brilliant & incisive note. Do not agree with some of your views, but this one is a bulls eye.
‘the routine working conditions are worsened due to an obsequious and servile culture that is underpinned by zero-error syndrome. Why do military officers prefer active duty field conditions to what they derogatorily refer as “peacetime soldiering”? Because the internal dissonances, inconsistencies and cultural repugnances in salubrious cantonments are knottier to bear than the external vagaries of terrain and climate in field areas.’
@Pragmatic
It is but ask the guy sitting in the most cozy office in New York. Even he will say that his working conditions are tough. [Don’t start seething with anger here. Read the full post.] This is not to belittle the tough service conditions for the average military officer, but to depict that it is more about attitude than the actual conditions.
Ok,why should we believe that the person sitting in a cozy office in Newyork is actually facing a tough working condition?
Pls explain.I thought after quoting this you are going to explain it in the next paragraph.Without an explanation it does not hold any meaning.
Brilliant , but how many senior officers will actally acknowledge the fact that the lowered status of the military today is of their own making, because of their shall we say display of weak moral courage to stand upto the neta-babu nexus and loyalty to perhaps self rather than service.
Actually the solution is very clear. It is no use blaming saying we created more ranks and hence degradation in work. Creation of rank is inevitable in the context of being equated to civilan counterparts by CPCs and Govt.
Once you have a separate pay commission then there is no need for equation. So a Captain or Major will not grudge being in the rank for long time as long as he is not attached to a civilian equivalent pay band and gets paid well for the work he is doing
The promotions proposals by AVC1 were a good decision and take off point in matching civilians while working at Delhi and in civilian environment.
So the solution is
Have a seperate pay commissiomn
Have scales of pay high and rank promotions be based both on merit cum time beyond captain.
In Govt and head quarters have majors to deal with addl/joint secretaries from different departments
@ All
How many times have you stood up to somebody for something which you believed in? How many times have you stood up with real conviction for somebody else? Also Is it always that you liked the person who stood up for something which you considered trivial or downright selfish/stupid? How many times have you appreciated a subordinate who has been sidelined/punished for some obstinate stance he took for a foolish matter? Please seek your own salvation.
@PS/ Max: Thanks.
@Sujata: Attitude. You can feel that the best places are the worst and vice versa.
@sk4: “If wishes were horses, beggars…”
@Eidelon: I appreciate your call for personal introspection. But there is merit in what Col DS Yadav has said in another comment about the top brass. Else if each is left to his own, “when riding a dead horse, dismount!”
Atleast the Service Chiefs have woken up and doing something substantial.They are the first to submit proposal to anamoly committee.We must appreciate them for their quick response.Also retired officers have penned thought provoking articles in media which also has given good visibility.
News item in Yahoo below
With resentment in the ranks over the pay panel recommendations, the armed forces have drawn up a joint proposal demanding more salaries for soldiers, an increase in allowances and pointing out “major anomalies” in the salary structure.
The joint memorandum, which will shortly be presented to Defence Minister A K Antony, has been drawn up by the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC) and emphasises the need for better salaries for soldiers and middle-rung officers.
One of the key contentions is that in the new recommendations, almost all armed forces personnel have been shifted to a lower salary grade compared to civilian officers of comparable service and experience.
To address this, the forces have proposed major changes in the Military Service Pay (MSP) – a new concept introduced in the Sixth Pay Commission to give armed forces an edge over others.
While the panel has fixed Rs 1,000 as MSP for all soldiers and Rs 6,000 for officers, the services have demanded that the special pay should be equated to the basic salary and be decreased progressively with seniority.
For entry-level soldiers, the armed forces have asked an MSP of 60 per cent of the basic pay which would progressively decrease to 40 per cent of basic till the seniormost level. This, officials say, will give entry level personnel incentives as well as cater to the aspirations of mid-level officers.
Another major issue brought out in the proposal is increase in special allowances for soldiers posted in harsh terrain and operationally active areas. In all cases, including allowances for counter-insurgency areas, Siachen postings and high altitude duty, the pay panel has recommended doubling of existing scales.
This has been deemed unfair by the services and they have asked for a rational rather than ‘arithmetic’ view on hikes considering tough service conditions.
The services have also demanded that their pay bands should be delinked from the civil services due to different promotion structures and shorter service period. Contending that majority of the personnel never reach the higher pay band in their career, the forces have asked for new pay bands.
The forces want to do away with the concept of a single pay band for personnel below officer’s rank and two pay bands for officers and have demanded three pay bands each for officers and soldiers.
The joint proposal also flatly rejects a recommendation by the pay panel for the lateral movement of short service commission officers and Personnel Below Officer Rank (PBOR) to paramilitary organisations like CRPF and BSF.
Considering that the recommendations have not solved the officer retention problem of the forces – as many as 14 Colonel-level officers handed in premature retirement applications to Defence Hqs within five days of the report – the services have expressed their keenness on speedy amendments to arrest “demoralisation down the ranks”.
@pragmatic
Things change with time and economic strength, not military might, governs the nation and society today.
unfortunately Indians have held this faulty line of thought for too long and never learnt from history. While economics is immportant not having military might will render a society vulnerable.
the Indian diaspora in various countries are among the economically strong classes. however they have a poor representation in the forces/paramilitary/police etc. result is that discrimination against them becomes easy eg Fiji.
The Gita also recognises this fact: If you are good without being strong it will be taken as your weakness.(pardon the translation)
Unfortunately even 4 wars and numerous internal conflicts have not been able to get the message through to our own countrymen.
There can be no economy without security eg Iraq, and a score of African countries.
The nation must realise that to sustain its double digit growth we need to be secure and be able to flex our muscles when required. The Chinese are on a major mordernisation plan of thier forces and this is complementing thier economic growth. Our defence forces need to be our national priority else this growth and consequent 6 figure salaries will not be sustainable.
Most service officers look at tough conditions as a challenge, and not as a burden
Yes, but shivering in icy siachin, battling it out in the heat of the thar or sailing away in choppy seas is no one’s idea of a an adventure outing. Please pragmatic, dont assume what someone else likes or dislikes. Let that be that persons’ choice.
@pragmatic
“It is but ask the guy sitting in the most cozy office in New York. Even he will say that his working conditions are tough”
every man has the right to think what he wants. but the truth will eventually show up. how many cozy office types, fed up with thier tough conditions, move to the forces??? how many youngsters think about the tough office conditions and join the army?? and just see the traffic in the opposite direction!
to say that it will be entirely fixable internally is to be naive(to put it mildly)
“Why do military officers prefer active duty field conditions to what they derogatorily refer as “peacetime soldiering”?”
Peace stations are being ’spoiled’ by the corporate culture which has started pervading the forces. the emphasis is more on management than leadership. However, what is the basis of this so called fact??? what % of the forces did you sample??
I have a knotty feeling that pragmatic has deliberately introduced this blogpost to generate debate!! the others were kind of petering out with most people agreeing with each other!!
@ sK4
‘Hope’ is what keeps the world moving. Three cheers to ‘HOPE’.
RM along with the chiefs have been making such statements since the SPC was constituted. It continues….will continue till the hype of SPC dies down. Separate pay commission/ representation from Armed Forces was what I heard when I was a kid….is what I heard while I was growing up….will hear when I retire or kick the bucket.
@pragmatic
“Frankly, I wonder if a Lt. Colonel is going to stay in the kitchen during a mess party, what difference does his equivalence to a DGP or IG or DIG going to make on his status?”
It will make a difference to him when he gets out of the kitchen and goes on the street. it will make a difference when he meets his counterparts outside the service.
He stays in the kitchen, mind you, because the stream of newcomers is slowly drying up.
@sk4/veeru
reliable sources have indicated that ‘appropriately worded press releases’ is all that the news is worth. expect very little if at all anything.
I would throw my hat in the ring with Pragmatic on a few counts.
These are random thouhgts, so please do not attempt a systesis.
Peace time tenures. They are absolutely horrendous, primarily due to the short term outlook of the commanders there. And they do take away from you one of the prime joys that should be due to a fauji – a return to peacetime training for war, after a hard field tenure.
MES houses. The fact that we have poor maintenance of this critical ‘intangible to our notional CTG’ can be blamed again to the bosses on the ground, where resources are moved on whim and fancy for short term gains- depriving the man on the ground fom having a dignified house, and not a rotting one. If someone says funds are a problem, I would like to know the names of stations where the Flagstaff house has given up its umpteenth AC in favour of tiling of a few NCOs bathrooms.
The bottom line, as told by Pragmatic, is that we are a whim-based army, and not a process oriented one. It is very difficult to becomne process oriented, as that would deprive the top from a large number of discretionary ‘perks’. But the sad fact remains that all these so called ‘perks’ are at the expense of dignity and joy of a fauji life for a large majority of people. The relationship is tangential, yet, as you rise in the system, it becomes all the more evident.
I think classes on the ‘Art of Living’ should be a must for all faujis, secially the top brass. The concept that at the end of the game, the king and the pawn go back into the same box, is not well understood.
Comparisons and emulation with the corporate world are our undoing.The concept of a Spartan life lies dead and buried.
The competing viewpoints of refrm from the top/ reform from wherever you are need a middle ground. I paraphrase from Jim Collins’ ‘Built to Last’ : Instead of relegating ourselves to the ‘Tyranny of the Or’ (ie should reform be top down or at every stage?), we should embrace ‘The Genius of the And’ ( both the thingsneed to go on simultaeneously) So, at this ponit, I diverge from Pragmatic.
Cheers!
This is my first but not the last visit to this blog. I have psychoanalysed the blogmaster(I hope this is the correct term) and many other bloggers and have arrived at a conclusion that most of them are Dukhi Atmas wanting to quit the service. They may claim to be blogging for improving the system but almost all of them are the proverbial ‘Rats desertng a sinking ship’ and claim to be ‘Captains remaining in the crippled ship’. I have also traced the antecedents of many and just be aware. ‘Samajhne wale ko Ishara kafi hota hain’
@ Dr Dave’s Spam Karma ??
How about some reverse psychoanalysis ??
–Refer –
At the outset – my compliments to pragmatic for this blog / site where most of the posts are thought provoking. I for one wouldnt be surprised if the int branches of all the three defence services aouls be trying to gag this site ..??
Full thread at
http://pragmatic.nationalinterest.in/2008/04/02/promotions-status-and-tough-conditions/#comment-2997
@ ALL
Gentle Readers,
Let us refrain from sliding into ungentlemanly conduct, Please.
Everyone is entitled to an opinion, incl the blogger. Respect all views, Please.
Dr Dave’s Spam Karma or Ak***t Ar**a:
I have also traced the antecedents of many and just be aware. ‘Samajhne wale ko Ishara kafi hota hain’
Should I post your service number and location in the UN mission? Are you trying to scare people from commenting on this blog? Must say that its a very amateurish and puerile effort to frighten people.
@PRAGMATIC No harm taking treatment from Dr Dave ,he is a surgeon if repute ,believe me a mad man will never agree if some one tells him that he is mad !
@Pragmatic
Nice to see the term CTN being used. I hope i have the patent for that. If we bother only about the CTG (which is in terms of money) then the CTN would be immense (Which would not be only in terms of Money.
Having decided upon the various ills that plague the Army mainly insensitive senior cadre and lack of inclusivity in the use of available facilities what action can be initiated to ensure that the ideal environment is created. senior officers are well aware of the need on ground but how can they be compelled to address the same.
@Raja:
Instead of relegating ourselves to the ‘Tyranny of the Or’ (ie should reform be top down or at every stage?), we should embrace ‘The Genius of the And’ ( both the things need to go on simultaeneously)
In theory, you are right. Practically, in top-driven hierarchical organisations, it means that the senior is beyond question and the “and” eventually ends up as an exclusive “or” for the junior. It is assumed that when you are holding the senior accountable, you as a junior are doing the right thing yourself. Thanks for your lucidly expressed views.
@Eidelon: CTN– Cost To Nation (All Rights reserved @ Eidelon)
@Pragmatic
Thanks.
I have a feeling that this was deliberately introduced to generate debate!! Pretty crafty!! The others were kind of petering out with most people agreeing with each other!!
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