<div>After returning their medals, a section of the protesting ex-servicemen on Wednesday tried to march up to Raisina Hills to meet President Pranab Mukherjee, but were stopped by the Delhi Police.<br /><br />Hours before the march, two ex-servicemen attempted to burn their medals before television cameras, but were stopped by others in the community, who are on protest against what they call a diluted version of the one-rank-one-pension (OROP) scheme, notified by the government last week.<br /><br />“We arranged a protest march from Jantar Mantar to Rashtrapati Bhavan against the diluted OROP scheme,” said a spokesperson of the ex-servicemen’s front. The protesting veterans sought an appointment with the president, who is also the supreme commander of the armed forces.<br /><br />As the ex-servicemen returned their medals and threatened to continue their stir, the NDA government now approaches the former service chiefs to pacify the agitating veterans, who are on the streets.<br /><br />Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who spent his second consecutive Diwali with soldiers in Punjab, said for the first time the government while notifying the OROP scheme had set up a commission to ensure there are no shortcomings in the process. “Its a fool-proof arrangement,” he said.<br /><br />While Modi dubbed OROP as a Diwali gift, one of the leading members of the protesting veterans Col Anil Kaul (rtd) said OROP was a right of the soldiers.Group Captain V K Gandhi (retd), general secretary of the Indian ex-servicemen movement, said the were fighting for their rights and a diluted OROP scheme was not acceptable. “The OROP scheme was cleared by parliament. Then why were the changes made in the scheme,” he asked.<br /><br />A day before more than 2,000 ex-servicemen returned their medals in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. The government officials were compelled to accept the medals as they threatened to leave the medals in the government offices.<br /><br />Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had earlier said that the ex-servicemen protesting against the OROP notification were misguided and not all demands by the veterans can be fulfilled.<br /></div>
<div>After returning their medals, a section of the protesting ex-servicemen on Wednesday tried to march up to Raisina Hills to meet President Pranab Mukherjee, but were stopped by the Delhi Police.<br /><br />Hours before the march, two ex-servicemen attempted to burn their medals before television cameras, but were stopped by others in the community, who are on protest against what they call a diluted version of the one-rank-one-pension (OROP) scheme, notified by the government last week.<br /><br />“We arranged a protest march from Jantar Mantar to Rashtrapati Bhavan against the diluted OROP scheme,” said a spokesperson of the ex-servicemen’s front. The protesting veterans sought an appointment with the president, who is also the supreme commander of the armed forces.<br /><br />As the ex-servicemen returned their medals and threatened to continue their stir, the NDA government now approaches the former service chiefs to pacify the agitating veterans, who are on the streets.<br /><br />Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who spent his second consecutive Diwali with soldiers in Punjab, said for the first time the government while notifying the OROP scheme had set up a commission to ensure there are no shortcomings in the process. “Its a fool-proof arrangement,” he said.<br /><br />While Modi dubbed OROP as a Diwali gift, one of the leading members of the protesting veterans Col Anil Kaul (rtd) said OROP was a right of the soldiers.Group Captain V K Gandhi (retd), general secretary of the Indian ex-servicemen movement, said the were fighting for their rights and a diluted OROP scheme was not acceptable. “The OROP scheme was cleared by parliament. Then why were the changes made in the scheme,” he asked.<br /><br />A day before more than 2,000 ex-servicemen returned their medals in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. The government officials were compelled to accept the medals as they threatened to leave the medals in the government offices.<br /><br />Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had earlier said that the ex-servicemen protesting against the OROP notification were misguided and not all demands by the veterans can be fulfilled.<br /></div>
