With an eye on the assembly election, chief minister Virbhadra Singh today announced more sops for ex-servicemen and their wards as they constitute a large section of the electorate.
Speaking at the an ex-servicemen rally in Mandi, the chief minister said the government was committed to protect the interests of the serving, ex-servicemen and their wards and provide them maximum benefits in the shape of financial assistance, employment, self-employment and create other income generating avenues to help them lead a better and economically secure life in the society.
On the occasion he announced enhancing of monthly pensions for all war veterans including those from the world war era. He said that state had the highest percentage of serving and ex-servicemen in the country. “There were 1,21,016 serving and 96,726 ex-servicemen, 1059 war widows, 23,725 other para-military war widows, 3,45,461 dependents of the ex-servicemen and 1,13,215, dependents of the serving soldiers,” he said.
The state had set up an eco task force and ex-servicemen were being deployed in it. The government had taken up the matter of one rank one pension case of ex-servicemen the central government from time to time. Soft loans for generating self employment avenues were being made available which had enabled ex-servicemen to deploy 1350 trucks with cement factories in the state, said Virbhadra.
Besides the chief minister, Kaul Singh Thakur, Irrigation and Public Health Minister, Rangila Ram Rao, Excise and Taxation Minister, and members of the Saink Welfare Board were also present on the occasion.
