Kargil casualty wins pension battle

NC Bipindra / TNN / Dec 24, 2006, 01:45 IST

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The CDA accepted Sepoy Harjinder Singh's disability and agreed to pay him Rs 775 as monthly disability pension.

CHANDIGARH: Sepoy Harjinder Singh of 15 Punjab Regiment behaves abnormally these days and shows anger at all he comes across.
Yes, what you think of Sepoy Harjinder Singh is quite right. He is mentally disturbed. But he wasn't this way until a fateful day in 1999.
At the peak of the Kargil battle the Indian Army was fighting to throw back enemy intruders, Sepoy Harjinder Singh was deployed along with his unit in the Mala-Sundarbani Sector of Rajouri Hills in Jammu and Kashmir.
On June 8, he was sent out by his unit to perform the most important of all Army duties: Supplying ammunition to the troops, the most essential need at a battle station.

The sepoy who had just put in about four years of service then, was escorting the Army truck carrying ammunition to a forward most post when the vehicle suddenly came under enemy mortar fire and artillery shelling.
The truck driver lost control and the 3-ton vehicle rolled down a 1,000-yard gorge, causing head injuries to Sepoy Harjinder and crushing his ribs and arms.
Fortunately, he was rescued from the gorge and admitted to the military hospital and during treatment, his injury report and inquiry was also completed.

After coming out from hospital Sepoy Harjinder used to pass out often and suffered 'black outs' and epileptic bouts.
For being absent from duty due to his health condition, he was punished and later discharged from service on May 30, 2003, after he was declared medically unfit due to borderline personality disorder.
Since then, Sepoy Harjinder, now residing at Khizrabad near Ropar, has remained unemployed due to his health condition and with no regular income, he could not afford treatment.
He was not covered under the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) too. The Controller of Defence Accounts rejected his disability claim, citing unit records.
When the matter was brought to the notice of the Ex-Servicemen Grievances Cell, its president Lt Col (retd) SS Sohi and advocate Lt Col (retd) BS Ghuman wrote to the authorities and filed a writ in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Due to their efforts and a court order in his favour, Sepoy Harjinder got himself re-examined for disability at the Base Hospital in Delhi on July 24 this year by the Appeal Medical Board.
The CDA accepted his disability and agreed to pay him Rs 775 as monthly disability pension with effect from May 31, 2003, for the 50 % disability he suffered due to his army service along with a pension of Rs 1,275.

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