Indian Army Initiates Special Drive to Address Payment Grievances, Disburses Rs 17 Crores to 10,000 Soldiers
Nagpur, 28th September 2023: The Indian Army, a formidable force comprising 1.5 million soldiers (JCO/ORs), including 150,000 reserve soldiers and 45,000 officers, is divided into five commands. The Southern Command is the largest, covering 41% of mainland India. Within this command, key sub-areas include UM&G (Uttar Maharashtra and Gujarat Area), among others like ARTRAC Trg Shimla and CINCAN in the Andamans.
PAO Kamptee Office
Established in 1979, the PAO (Pay Accounts Office) Kamptee is primarily responsible for the disbursement of pay and allowances for approximately 19,000 soldiers belonging to the Brigade of the Guards Regimental Centre. As of June 1, 2018, the number of allowances was reduced from 89 to 50, leading to an increase in grievances. These grievances mainly stemmed from issues such as non-adjustment of allowances, incomplete or incorrect documentation, delays, and bureaucratic red tape.
Special Grievance Redressal Drive
To address these concerns, a special drive was initiated from September 3, 2023, to September 24, 2023, under the guidance of the CGDA HQ in New Delhi. Coordinated by Jt. CDA (Grievances), the drive involved all PCDAs/CDAs and in-charge PAOs in 46 sub-offices across the country. Led by Sh. Rajeev J Kuruvilla, ACDA I/c, along with a dedicated team of nine officers, the drive successfully disbursed Rs. 17 crores to 10,000 JCOs/ORs/Soldiers.
Leadership and Review
The success of this initiative is attributed to the leadership of Sh. B K Singh, IDAS, Jt. CGDA (Grievance), and his team, under the guidance of Sh. S.G. Ghosh Dastidar, IDAS, CGDA New Delhi. Dr. Rajeev Chavan, IDAS, ndc, PCDA (SC) Pune, visited PAO Kamptee on September 25, 2023, to review the work carried out during the special drive. He commended the efforts and emphasized the need to extend this successful model to all other PAOs.
