Govt announces OROP for ex-servicemen, pension to be revised every five years

September 5, 2015

New Delhi, Sep 5: The government has decided to implement the One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme for veterans, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said here on Saturday. The pension would be refixed every five years and the scheme will be with effect from July 1, 2014.

But the ex-servicemen said they were not "fully satisfied" with the government's decision. Maj Gen (retd) Satbir Singh, spearheading the campaign for OROP said they will take a decision later on whether to continue with the agitation for the implementation of the scheme.

Parrikar said that the arrears for the much-awaited scheme will be paid in four half- yearly instalments. Widows and war widows will get it first in one instalment.

"OROP will be fixed on the basis of calendar year 2013. Pension will be refixed for all pensioners on the same rank and with the same length of service as the average of minimum and maximum pension in 2013," he said.

Parrikar said that the previous government had set aside a sum of Rs.500 crores for OROP, but it was "not based on a thorough analysis".

He said experts have now estimated that the cost to the exchequer will be Rs.8,000 crores to Rs.10,000 crores. "This will increase further." The expenditure on arrears alone will be around Rs.10,000 crores to Rs.12,000 crores. Those drawing pensions above the average will be protected.

The minister said that personnel who opt for premature retirement will not be covered under the OROP scheme. "In future, the pension will be refixed every five years."

Over 25 lakh veterans would benefit from the implementation of the OROP scheme. The veterans have been protesting at Jantar Mantar for nearly three months to demand the implementation of the OROP scheme. They had said they would step up their protest if their demand was not met.

The announcement comes ahead of the upcoming Bihar assembly election. There had been intense speculation that Prime Minister Narendra Modi may announce the OROP scheme during his August 15 Independence Day address to the nation. But, he only said that the scheme had been accepted in principle.

Parrikar made the announcement in the presence of the army chief, General Dalbir Singh, the naval chief, Admiral R.K. Dhowan, the air force chief, Air Chief Marshal Aroop Raha and Defence Secretary G. Mohan Kumar.

Parrikar said that the OROP issue has been pending for four decades and this was a matter of deep anguish. He said that there were technical and financial difficulties in implementing it.

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IndiGo CEO says less than 1,000 cancellations on Dec 6; normalcy by Dec 15

News Network

December 5,2025

New Delhi, Dec 5: IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers issued a public apology this evening after more than a thousand flights were cancelled today, making it the "most severely impacted day" in terms of cancellations. The biggest airline of the country cancelled "more than half" of its daily number of flights on Friday, said Elbers. He also said that even though the crisis will persist on Saturday, the airline anticipates fewer than 1,000 flight cancellations.

"Full normalisation is expected between December 10 and 15, though IndiGo cautions that recovery will take time due to the scale of operations," the IndiGo CEO said.

IndiGo operates around 2,300 domestic and international flights daily.

Pieter Elbers, while apologising for the major inconvenience due to delays and cancellations, said the situation is a result of various causes.

The crisis at IndiGo stems from new regulations that boost pilots' weekly rest requirements by 12 hours to 48 and allow only two night-time landings per week, down from six. IndiGo has attributed the mass cancellations to "misjudgment and planning gaps".

Elbers also listed three lines of action that the airline will adopt to address the issue.

"Firstly, customer communication and addressing your needs, for this, messages have been sent on social media. And just now, a more detailed communication with information, refunds, cancellations and other customer support measures was sent," he said.

The airline has also stepped up its call centre capacity.

"Secondly, due to yesterday's situation, we had customers stranded mostly at the nation's largest airports. Our focus was for all of them to be able to travel today itself, which will be achieved. For this, we also ask customers whose flights are cancelled not to come to the airports as notifications are sent," the CEO said.

"Thirdly, cancellations were made for today to align our crew and planes to be where they need to start tomorrow morning afresh. Earlier measures of the last few days, regrettable, have proven not to be enough, but we have decided today to reboot all our systems and schedules, resulting in the highest numbers of cancellations so far, but imperative for progressive improvements starting from tomorrow," he added.

As airports witnessed chaotic scenes, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) stepped in to grant IndiGo a temporary exemption from stricter night duty rules for pilots. It also allowed substitution of leaves with a weekly rest period.

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu has said a high-level inquiry will be ordered and accountability will be fixed.

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PM Modi, King Abdullah II share 8-point vision to deepen India-Jordan ties

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December 16,2025

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah II in Amman, during which the two leaders discussed ways to further strengthen bilateral relations, with the Prime Minister outlining an eight-point vision covering key areas of cooperation.

Describing the meeting as “productive”, PM Modi said he shared a roadmap focused on trade and economy, fertilisers and agriculture, information technology, healthcare, infrastructure, critical and strategic minerals, civil nuclear cooperation, and people-to-people ties.

In a post on social media platform X, the Prime Minister praised King Abdullah II’s personal commitment to advancing India–Jordan relations, particularly as both countries mark the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties this year.

“Held productive discussions with His Majesty King Abdullah II in Amman. His personal commitment towards vibrant India-Jordan relations is noteworthy. This year, we are celebrating the 75th anniversary of our bilateral diplomatic relations,” PM Modi said.

The meeting took place at the Al Husseiniya Palace, where the two leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), both sides agreed to further deepen cooperation in areas including trade and investment, defence and security, counter-terrorism and de-radicalisation, fertilisers and agriculture, infrastructure, renewable energy, tourism, and heritage.

The MEA said both leaders reaffirmed their united stand against terrorism.

PM Modi arrived in Amman earlier on Monday and was received by Jordanian Prime Minister Jafar Hassan, who accorded him a formal welcome. Following the talks, King Abdullah II hosted a banquet dinner in honour of the Prime Minister, reflecting the warmth of bilateral ties.

Jordan is the first leg of PM Modi’s three-nation tour. From Amman, the Prime Minister will travel to Ethiopia at the invitation of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali, marking his first official visit to the African nation. The tour will conclude with a visit to Oman.

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