ECHS facilities extended to officer cadets discharged on medical grounds from military training

New Delhi, Aug 29 (PTI) The defence ministry has sanctioned the grant of medical facilities under the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) to officer cadets who get discharged from training on medical grounds due to causes "attributable to or aggravated" by military training, according to an official communication.

However, the ECHS facility would be available only to the individuals concerned, as per the communication issued on Friday by the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare (DESW) of the Ministry of Defence.

The move has come as big relief for those people who have been struggling with the aftermath of being boarded out of military institutes over the last few decades, and many of them also faced with mounting medical bills.

The boarded-out cadets have been seeking status of an ex-servicemen for a long time.

With this approval, these cadets will now be eligible for availing "cashless and capless healthcare facilities" under the ECHS, the ministry said.

"I am directed to convey the sanction of the competent authority for the grant of medical facilities under Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) to officer cadets who are invalidated from training on medical grounds due to causes attributable to or aggravated by military training," the communication reads.

Also, the one-time subscription fee (i.e. Rs 1.20 lakh currently applicable to ESM officers) will not be charged from the officer cadets towards joining the ECHS scheme, it said.

However, the facilities are subject to certain conditions.

These cadets need to apply for membership of ECHS and accept ECHS rules, and they should not be members of any other government health scheme.

With this move, the officer cadets will be entitled to avail free OPD services at ECHS polyclinics, as well as cashless OPD or IPD investigations at ECHS-empanelled hospitals, as pe the communication.

It, however, mentions that this sanction is being granted as a "special dispensation and shall not be quoted as a precedence".

The official communication has been addressed to the three Service chiefs and the Chief of the Defence Staff.

Later in the day, the ministry issued a statement, saying cadets who join prestigious institutions like the NDA (National Defence Academy), OTA (Officers Training Academy) and IMA (Indian Military Academy) with the aspiration to serve the nation, "often suffer life-long disabilities, but are currently not eligible for ECHS as they are not granted ex-servicemen (ESM) status".

"Reaffirming its commitment to the dignity and well-being of the armed forces", the government has approved the extension of ECHS facilities to officer cadets who are "invalidated from training on medical grounds attributable to or aggravated by military training," it said.

This measure is applicable to cadets who have been medically boarded out "prior to completion of training" and is also extendable to future similar cases, the government said.

"Considering the humanitarian nature and financial burden on families, the government has approved quality medical care for such cadets without creating a precedent for other categories," it said.

While a small number of cadets annually are affected, the financial and emotional burden on their families is significant. In such instances, the practice is to extend a monthly ex-gratia payment to such cadets, officials said.

In addition, based on the extent of disability (20 per cent to 100 per cent), a monthly ex-gratia disability award is also made available to such cadets.

The ECHS was launched with effect from April 1, 2003. The scheme aims to provide allopathic and Ayush medicare to ex-servicemen pensioner and their dependents through a network of ECHS polyclinics, service medical facilities, government hospitals, empanelled private hospitals or specified government Ayush hospitals spread across the country, according to DESW website.

It has 30 regional centres and 448 polyclinics across India with a total beneficiary base of approximately 63 lakh. It has over 3,000 empanelled healthcare organisations under its network, according to the ministry.

Kolkata-based Ankur Chaturvedi, who was medically boarded out of the NDA, while being an officer training cadet, in 1996, and who also has been fighting for the cause of such cadets, welcomed the decision and termed it as a "big relief" for them.

"It is a big win for our fight all these years, and brings a big relief for cadets who have been boarded out on medical grounds," he told PTI over phone.

However, it would have been better if parents of such cadets who have died or parents of cadets who belong to economically weaker sections are also covered in it, Chaturvedi, 51, said.

As per estimates, there are around 500 officer cadets who have been medically discharged from these military institutes since 1985, due to varying degrees of disability incurred during training. Many of these are now staring at mounting medical bills with an ex-gratia monthly payment that's falls short of what they need, he said.

The Supreme Court on Monday had sought response of the Centre and defence forces in a suo motu case on difficulties faced by cadets, who were medically discharged from military institutes on account of disabilities suffered during training programmes. PTI KND NB NB