Thaindian News

New Delhi, June 5 (IANS) About 50,000 Indian Navy sailors can hope for faster promotions and more pay, with the government approving an assured career progression scheme and a review of their career profile in accordance with the Sixth Pay Commission’s recommendations, an officer said Sunday.

The navy has become the first of the three armed forces to implement the scheme, applicable for all the services. The scheme will be applicable to sailors who joined the force under the non-matric recruitment stream at the level of seaman, artificer apprentice, artificer (direct entry diploma holder) and direct entry acting petty officer.

Approved May 19, the career progression scheme envisages three financial up-gradations counted from the direct entry grade and will be provided to sailors on completion of eight, 16 and 24 years of service respectively, the officer in the naval headquarters here said.

“Financial upgradation under the scheme will be admissible whenever a personnel below officer rank has spent eight years continuously in the same grade pay and the hike will be applicable to the grade pay,” he said.

“For example, a direct entry seaman or equivalent with a grade pay of Rs.2,000 per month at the time of joining, will get a grade pay of a leading seaman of Rs.2,400 per month after eight continuous years of sevice in this rank.

“At 16 years of service, he would get a grade pay of a petty officer of Rs.2,800 and after 24 years, he would get grade pay of Rs.4,200 of a chief petty officer,” he added.

However, there will be no change in the sailor’s designation, rank bagdes, employability and re-engagement criteria. However, financial benefits linked to pay would be admissible such as family accommodation allowance, house rent allowance, travel allowance and other entitlements.

Sailors, who have be granted the assured career progression benefits, will still be considered for promotion to the next rank as per vacancies and existing norms. If the personnel refused promotion or promotion-related courses wherever applicable, the assured career progression scheme too would be denied to him.

Apart from the pay benefits, a non-matric recruit also gets to serve for four or five years more in the navy, instead of retiring after 20 years of service, thereby ensuring the availability of trained manpower.