Paramilitary forces seek 'national allowance' to end disparity

To stop the high rate of attrition and boost morale of combat soldiers in the high casualty internal security domain, the 9-lakh personnel strong paramilitary forces have demanded creation of a "national allowance grid".
In a recent presentation given to the 7th Pay Commission by the chiefs of six paramilitaries working under the command of the Union Home Ministry-- CRPF, BSF, ITBP, CISF, SSB and NSG -- these forces have demanded 'one area, one allowance' for the troops who are on continuous duty both during war and peace at country's international borders and in heavy duty conflict theaters of anti-Naxal operations and counter-insurgency tasks.

The Directors General of these forces, according to the presentation accessed by PTI, have asked the Commission to create a uniform band or a national allowance grid where every soldier, whether from the Army, Navy, Air Force or these central forces, deployed in an identical area is given equal allowances categorised under hard area/risk allowance.
To give an example, the paramilitary forces have demanded that an Army soldier and a BSF trooper posted shoulder-to- shoulder along the Indo-Pak border should draw the same allowances irrespective of his force affiliation.
Similar request has been made by the Indo-Tibetan Border Police which is deployed along the China border along with special Army units.

At present, the special allowances given to paramilitary troops is lesser than those given to Army or other service soldiers.