The respect that Indian Armed Forces command is beyond any doubt or question. We proudly proclaim that we have the second best army in the world. We all enjoy those neatly formed, extraordinarily disciplined parades displayed on our televisions during Independence & Republic Day celebrations. Yet there are so many facts that we are not aware of as far as out prestigious Indian army is concerned.

The Brilliant Pay Scale

The lowest grade in the hierarchy of Indian Army is the Sepoy, this is the position at which majority numbers fill into the armed forces. The monthly salary that this soldier in this position receives is roughly Rs. 5,200. While most corporate employees crib and cry every year over their increment percentage not going beyond 15%, the poor Sepoy of our army gets an increment on an average of 3% per year. Even with the various grade pay and dearness allowances the salary hardly touches Rs. 15,000 per month. This figure is not even sufficient for a single member household to sustain in our country today considering the inflation rate.
Indian army has a differential pay scale for the same rank officers for different locations. Naturally officers operating in high risk areas receive better pay than their counterparts in other locations which are relatively more peaceful. To make his ends meet and take care of his household the soldier opts for a dangerous location without having any regard for his own personal safety and security.

The Non War Martrys

I have heard several times on several forums that why do we need to think about the army and other forces so much. We are not at war since 1999. Yes we are not at war from any external bodies, but we always forget the several internal conflicts that we have been facing since our country attained independence in 1947. In all these conflicts the primary response team, after the local security forces lose control, has always been the Indian Army.

Consider these facts. During the Kargil War in 1999, under Operation Vijay, we lost 530 of our brave soldiers. In the past 18 years, post that, we have lost about 3987 jawans to various internal conflicts. That is roughly 222 soldiers per year. An alarming figure for an army which is operating in a non-war time period.

These are just a few snapshots of the many statistics that we are absolutely unaware of. Inspite of all these issues that these brave jawans face everyday in their lives professionally and personally, you will seldom find any of these talking anything wrong about our country. Their hands will never shiver while pulling the trigger towards the enemies of our country. They will not care about their safety of security in their line of duty. So the next time you think of the army and feel that we are overstating their merit think twice. They are not even getting the perks and luxuries that you and me are blessed with.

Ratheesh Nair
Atharva Institute of Management Studies