By IANS
New Delhi : The three Service chiefs command the men in uniform who are prepared to lay down their lives to protect the country’s territorial integrity, but they themselves have been denied exemption from security procedures at airports.
Parliament was informed Wednesday that the civil aviation ministry had turned down a proposal to grant the exemption as it would “lead to similar demands from some other authorities”.
“The ministry of defence had taken up with the ministry of civil aviation that the three Service chiefs be exempted from security procedures at civil airports in line with treatment given to ministers and senior bureaucrats,” Defence Minister A.K. Antony said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha Wednesday.
“The ministry of civil aviation and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security have stated that according exemption to Service chiefs will lead to similar demands from some other authorities,” the minister added.
The defence ministry had approached its civil aviation counterpart after the Service chiefs addressed a letter to it earlier this year for exempting them from security procedures.
While travelling within the country, the Service chiefs almost invariably travel by the Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft. They board these from the military enclaves of civil airports, which means they do not have to undergo any security procedures.
During foreign travels, which are undertaken on commercial flights, the Service chiefs have to board the aircraft from civil terminals. This means they are bodily frisked and have hand-held metal detectors run over them by security personnel who rank equivalent to a junior commissioned officer in the armed forces.
Not surprisingly, the refusal to grant them exemption from these security procedures has not gone down well with the armed forces.
“It’s ironic that senior bureaucrats are exempt but the Service chiefs have been denied this. In many cases, the Service chiefs outrank the exempt bureaucrats in the warrant of precedence. So, why should they have to undergo the security procedures?” an officer asked rather irately.
“The Service chiefs rise to their positions after serving for almost 40 years. On their commissioning, they take an oath to protect the country’s integrity, ensure the welfare of their troops, and only then consider their own welfare.
“As they rise up the chain, they are often called on to lead from the front even at risk to their lives. Look at the number of officers who have died while fighting insurgency. And yet, when they rise to the top, they are denied exemption from security grounds on a specious ground,” the officer added, speaking on condition of anonymity.