Dear Veteran,
Regards. Find below an article by a celebrated veteran(Air Marshal) B.D.Jayal. I must remind you that this article has translated the aspirations of all of veterans into words. One of our veterans, Thomas Manimala,has already expressed same on the C'Box of this blog yesterday. Let us hope for the best in days to come.
Veteran Prabhjot Singh Chhatwal PLS Retd.
President,
Indian Ex-services League ,Punjab & Chandigarh.
Mob. 098554-09128,Tele-Fax. 91-175-5000896.
FLYING INTO HOPE - The Indian military
needs the healing touch of the President
Brijesh D. Jayal
By the time this article is published, the president of India
and supreme commander of the armed forces will have
bestowed a singular honour on the armed forces by having
flown in a Sukhoi combat aircraft. To anyone other than jet
fighter pilots just the preparation for such a flight is
forbidding, quite apart from the flight itself. The flying gear,
the anti-gravitation suit, the survival kit, the heavy crash helmet
and the stifling oxygen mask are but some of the tedious add-ons.
To then get strapped into an ejector seat and be firmly locked
into a cramped cockpit with little freedom to move leaves the
uninitiated flustered. That the president did all this must surely
display a determination on her part, not just to be known
as the supreme commander of the armed forces of India,
but to be seen as one. To mingle at the operational end of her
command and expose herself to the accompanying risks will,
therefore, be perceived by every soldier, sailor, airman and veteran
as a great symbol of hope for the future of the institution of
the armed forces of India. A future that in recent times has looked
progressively fragile.
Ceremonially, the president is adequately exposed to the armed forces
of which she is the supreme commander. She must regularly see the
President’s Bodyguard at Rashtrapati Bhavan, an elite unit of the
Indian army tasked with her security and ceremonial duties. Her
military secretariat consists of a three-star rank military secretary,
carefully chosen, as also three aides de camp from each of the three
wings of the armed forces. Also, the three chiefs and a select few
seniormost commanders from each service are honoured to be
designated as honorary ADCs to the president. This entitles them
to add the suffix, ADC, proudly to their decorations.
At one level, the immaculate turn-out, the glittering medals and
crisp demeanour of the military that she sees around her must
assure her that she commands the best that the nation has to offer.
At another, she will have seen, perhaps for the first time,
the operational end of a force and been suitably impressed that the
nation remains secure in such hands. When she chooses to sail a
ship of the Indian navy or visit our army colleagues defending some
of the cruellest terrains in the country, her confidence will be only
further enhanced.
Upon return to the heady air of the Rashtrapati Bhavan and buoyed
by the experience of her day in the field, she may be tempted to call in
her military secretary and wonder at the deeper significance of medals
adorning his chest. She will be pleasantly surprised to learn that these
pieces of metal and ribbon that look merely decorative represent a deep
emotional attachment in the wearer. Each signifies service rendered
through sweat and blood. Those for distinguished service and gallantry
are conferred by the president herself and each has a story to tell.
Stories that are passed on and etched in institutional memory of
operational units such that they inspire successive generations of men
and women to draw sustenance from them and not be found wanting
were the moment of reckoning ever to come.
The military secretary may be emboldened to delve deeper and explain
that the design of each medal has significance, as have the colours of the
accompanying ribbons. Red, the colour of blood and fire, stands for courage
and bravery. Saffron for self-effacement and dedicated service. White for faith,
glory and purity. Blue for devotion to duty and sacrifice, and so on. Above all,
each medal has etched on its rim the rank, name and number of the individual
on whom it is conferred. A medal, therefore, to a soldier is far more than the
service and sacrifice that he or she has rendered through thick and thin;
it is a personal recognition of this sacrifice by the nation. This makes it an
invaluable part of a soldier’s life in and out of uniform.
Recognizing that the constitutional role of the supreme commander is a
ceremonial one, the president may well ask her military secretary what
the ordinary soldier would expect from their supreme commander.
The secretary could explain that the credo of the armed forces is:
“The safety, honour and welfare of your country comes first, always and
every time; the honour, welfare and comfort of the men you command
come next; your own ease comfort and safety come last, always and every
time.” It is this code by which the armed forces conduct themselves and
judge their success or failure. It is also the one by which they judge higher
national leaderships.
Having got thus far and finding the president in a mood to learn more
about the strange ethos of a body of men and women, of whom she is the
supreme commander, the military secretary may be emboldened to
reveal to her that at that very moment there are stored in some obscure
corner of the Rashtrapati Bhavan hundreds of such medals that have been
neatly labelled and packed by their proud recipients, but returned
as a symbol of solemn and dignified protest at being perceived to have
been let down by the very nation that had bestowed the honour on them.
More such medals keep coming at regular intervals.
He may explain this unfortunate chapter as having its roots in the
anomalies of the sixth pay commission and the denial of the frequently
promised “one rank one pension” principle. Since knocking on various
doors evoked no response, many veterans held silent gatherings at
various memorials across the cities and towns. These gatherings were
in tribute to their fallen colleagues and also intended to convey their
pain and anguish at the neglect and apathy in addressing various
issues concerning the welfare of veterans. The surrendering of medals
was the next step in this inglorious first in the annals of free India’s
military history and one that a sensitive leadership should have made
every effort to nip in the bud, but chose to ignore instead. As indeed
it continues to do.
While the veteran community was one with the cause, the above means
of redressal followed by some succeeded in dividing the veteran
community itself, pitching senior and distinguished veterans, including
commanders, on either side of the divide. Clearly, here was another
dubious first, this time in the history of veteran solidarity.
He may even explain that when the unprecedented step of surrendering
their valued medals to their supreme commander was contemplated,
rather than facilitate an audience with the president to assuage hurt
sentiments and show due courtesy to senior veterans, some lower
functionary in the president’s secretariat received their valued medals.
Clearly the dignity which steered these veterans through their years of
sacrifice was missing at the doors of their erstwhile supreme commander.
A wound that could have been healed by an audience with the president
had callously been allowed to deepen, as more and more medals were
sought to be returned.
The military secretary may venture to suggest that since today’s forces
are tomorrow’s veterans, this state of affairs is deeply distressing to the
entire institution of the armed forces and needs the supreme
commander’s healing touch. He may add that this is the first time in the
history of the Indian republic that the supreme commander is actually
being called upon to exercise her authority in furtherance of her
welfare responsibilities.
Even as the president mulls over this burdensome background, she may
begin to wonder why, as supreme commander, she was not expected to
lay a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti on the occasion of the annual
Republic Day military parade. Further, she may wonder why
Amar Jawan Jyoti, which symbolizes an eternal Indian soldier in whose
memory the flame burns, was the shadow of India Gate, which is a fitting
memorial that the British built in memory of our soldiers who died
fighting their wars — not ours. Where indeed was the national war
memorial commemorating all those who have laid down their lives
fighting India’s wars and the proposal regarding which has been shuttling
up and down the corridors of national governance for decades? These
disturbing questions would now weigh heavily on her presidential
responsibilities.
If the symbolic gesture of stepping into the cockpit of a combat aircraft
and getting a feel of what the defence forces are doing to keep this nation
secure generates some of the emotions and welfare concerns that afflict
the institution of our defence forces and their veterans, then the hope
generated by this symbolic event may well translate into reality —
that of a more active role of the supreme commander in the realm of
welfare of the men and women she commands.
The president has the distinction of being the first woman to hold this
exalted position. Let her choose to be the first to exercise her obligations
towards the welfare of those under her supreme command.
The author is a retired Air Marshal of the Indian Air Force
Regards. Find below an article by a celebrated veteran(Air Marshal) B.D.Jayal. I must remind you that this article has translated the aspirations of all of veterans into words. One of our veterans, Thomas Manimala,has already expressed same on the C'Box of this blog yesterday. Let us hope for the best in days to come.
Veteran Prabhjot Singh Chhatwal PLS Retd.
President,
Indian Ex-services League ,Punjab & Chandigarh.
Mob. 098554-09128,Tele-Fax. 91-175-5000896.
FLYING INTO HOPE - The Indian military
needs the healing touch of the President
Brijesh D. Jayal
By the time this article is published, the president of India
and supreme commander of the armed forces will have
bestowed a singular honour on the armed forces by having
flown in a Sukhoi combat aircraft. To anyone other than jet
fighter pilots just the preparation for such a flight is
forbidding, quite apart from the flight itself. The flying gear,
the anti-gravitation suit, the survival kit, the heavy crash helmet
and the stifling oxygen mask are but some of the tedious add-ons.
To then get strapped into an ejector seat and be firmly locked
into a cramped cockpit with little freedom to move leaves the
uninitiated flustered. That the president did all this must surely
display a determination on her part, not just to be known
as the supreme commander of the armed forces of India,
but to be seen as one. To mingle at the operational end of her
command and expose herself to the accompanying risks will,
therefore, be perceived by every soldier, sailor, airman and veteran
as a great symbol of hope for the future of the institution of
the armed forces of India. A future that in recent times has looked
progressively fragile.
Ceremonially, the president is adequately exposed to the armed forces
of which she is the supreme commander. She must regularly see the
President’s Bodyguard at Rashtrapati Bhavan, an elite unit of the
Indian army tasked with her security and ceremonial duties. Her
military secretariat consists of a three-star rank military secretary,
carefully chosen, as also three aides de camp from each of the three
wings of the armed forces. Also, the three chiefs and a select few
seniormost commanders from each service are honoured to be
designated as honorary ADCs to the president. This entitles them
to add the suffix, ADC, proudly to their decorations.
At one level, the immaculate turn-out, the glittering medals and
crisp demeanour of the military that she sees around her must
assure her that she commands the best that the nation has to offer.
At another, she will have seen, perhaps for the first time,
the operational end of a force and been suitably impressed that the
nation remains secure in such hands. When she chooses to sail a
ship of the Indian navy or visit our army colleagues defending some
of the cruellest terrains in the country, her confidence will be only
further enhanced.
Upon return to the heady air of the Rashtrapati Bhavan and buoyed
by the experience of her day in the field, she may be tempted to call in
her military secretary and wonder at the deeper significance of medals
adorning his chest. She will be pleasantly surprised to learn that these
pieces of metal and ribbon that look merely decorative represent a deep
emotional attachment in the wearer. Each signifies service rendered
through sweat and blood. Those for distinguished service and gallantry
are conferred by the president herself and each has a story to tell.
Stories that are passed on and etched in institutional memory of
operational units such that they inspire successive generations of men
and women to draw sustenance from them and not be found wanting
were the moment of reckoning ever to come.
The military secretary may be emboldened to delve deeper and explain
that the design of each medal has significance, as have the colours of the
accompanying ribbons. Red, the colour of blood and fire, stands for courage
and bravery. Saffron for self-effacement and dedicated service. White for faith,
glory and purity. Blue for devotion to duty and sacrifice, and so on. Above all,
each medal has etched on its rim the rank, name and number of the individual
on whom it is conferred. A medal, therefore, to a soldier is far more than the
service and sacrifice that he or she has rendered through thick and thin;
it is a personal recognition of this sacrifice by the nation. This makes it an
invaluable part of a soldier’s life in and out of uniform.
Recognizing that the constitutional role of the supreme commander is a
ceremonial one, the president may well ask her military secretary what
the ordinary soldier would expect from their supreme commander.
The secretary could explain that the credo of the armed forces is:
“The safety, honour and welfare of your country comes first, always and
every time; the honour, welfare and comfort of the men you command
come next; your own ease comfort and safety come last, always and every
time.” It is this code by which the armed forces conduct themselves and
judge their success or failure. It is also the one by which they judge higher
national leaderships.
Having got thus far and finding the president in a mood to learn more
about the strange ethos of a body of men and women, of whom she is the
supreme commander, the military secretary may be emboldened to
reveal to her that at that very moment there are stored in some obscure
corner of the Rashtrapati Bhavan hundreds of such medals that have been
neatly labelled and packed by their proud recipients, but returned
as a symbol of solemn and dignified protest at being perceived to have
been let down by the very nation that had bestowed the honour on them.
More such medals keep coming at regular intervals.
He may explain this unfortunate chapter as having its roots in the
anomalies of the sixth pay commission and the denial of the frequently
promised “one rank one pension” principle. Since knocking on various
doors evoked no response, many veterans held silent gatherings at
various memorials across the cities and towns. These gatherings were
in tribute to their fallen colleagues and also intended to convey their
pain and anguish at the neglect and apathy in addressing various
issues concerning the welfare of veterans. The surrendering of medals
was the next step in this inglorious first in the annals of free India’s
military history and one that a sensitive leadership should have made
every effort to nip in the bud, but chose to ignore instead. As indeed
it continues to do.
While the veteran community was one with the cause, the above means
of redressal followed by some succeeded in dividing the veteran
community itself, pitching senior and distinguished veterans, including
commanders, on either side of the divide. Clearly, here was another
dubious first, this time in the history of veteran solidarity.
He may even explain that when the unprecedented step of surrendering
their valued medals to their supreme commander was contemplated,
rather than facilitate an audience with the president to assuage hurt
sentiments and show due courtesy to senior veterans, some lower
functionary in the president’s secretariat received their valued medals.
Clearly the dignity which steered these veterans through their years of
sacrifice was missing at the doors of their erstwhile supreme commander.
A wound that could have been healed by an audience with the president
had callously been allowed to deepen, as more and more medals were
sought to be returned.
The military secretary may venture to suggest that since today’s forces
are tomorrow’s veterans, this state of affairs is deeply distressing to the
entire institution of the armed forces and needs the supreme
commander’s healing touch. He may add that this is the first time in the
history of the Indian republic that the supreme commander is actually
being called upon to exercise her authority in furtherance of her
welfare responsibilities.
Even as the president mulls over this burdensome background, she may
begin to wonder why, as supreme commander, she was not expected to
lay a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti on the occasion of the annual
Republic Day military parade. Further, she may wonder why
Amar Jawan Jyoti, which symbolizes an eternal Indian soldier in whose
memory the flame burns, was the shadow of India Gate, which is a fitting
memorial that the British built in memory of our soldiers who died
fighting their wars — not ours. Where indeed was the national war
memorial commemorating all those who have laid down their lives
fighting India’s wars and the proposal regarding which has been shuttling
up and down the corridors of national governance for decades? These
disturbing questions would now weigh heavily on her presidential
responsibilities.
If the symbolic gesture of stepping into the cockpit of a combat aircraft
and getting a feel of what the defence forces are doing to keep this nation
secure generates some of the emotions and welfare concerns that afflict
the institution of our defence forces and their veterans, then the hope
generated by this symbolic event may well translate into reality —
that of a more active role of the supreme commander in the realm of
welfare of the men and women she commands.
The president has the distinction of being the first woman to hold this
exalted position. Let her choose to be the first to exercise her obligations
towards the welfare of those under her supreme command.
The author is a retired Air Marshal of the Indian Air Force
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