SC grants Centre time till March 15 to clear OROP arrears

The Supreme Court on Monday granted Central government time, till March 15, to make payment of arrears of One Rank-One Pension (OROP) to all the eligible pensioners of the armed forces.

Attorney General R. Venkataramani, representing the Centre, submitted before a bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud that the tabulation process has been completed by the Comptroller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA). He further added that the tables have been sent to the Ministry of Defence for final approval.

The bench, also comprising Justice P.S. Narasimha, asked the central government to ensure that armed forces pensioners receive all arrears expeditiously and there is no further delay.

The AG submitted that by March 15, the money will start flowing into the accounts of 25 lakh pensioners of the armed forces.

The bench allowed the ex-servicemen association to move an application if they have issues in connection with the payment of arrears.

The Central government, last month, moved the apex court seeking extension of time till March 15, 2023 for payment of arrears of OROP scheme to the eligible armed forces pensioners.

In March last year, the top court, in a verdict, said OROP scheme is a policy decision and the court finds no constitutional infirmity in the OROP principle as defined by the communication issued by the government on November 7, 2015. "Arrears payable to all eligible pensioners of the armed forces shall be computed and paid over accordingly within a period of three months," it said.

In June, last year, the Centre moved the apex court and sought time to compute and make payments in accordance with the March verdict, which came on the plea filed by the Indian Ex-servicemen Movement (IESM) against the Centre's formula.