The Supreme Court has asked the Central Government whether military cadets who become ineligible due to injuries or disability sustained during training can be granted ex-servicemen status so that they can avail the benefits of reservation in government and semi-government jobs. A bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan said that most of the military cadets are below 30 years of age and would need employment.
The bench said that the issue that arose during the hearing was whether cadets who were removed from service due to medical reasons during training can also be considered as ex-servicemen or ex-servicemen so that they can get the benefit of reservation in various government and semi-government jobs and posts.
Supreme Court Said that the Additional Solicitor General should obtain instructions on this aspect, so that these cadets can also be included in the ambit of ex-servicemen, as most of them are in the age group of 20-30 years.
Additional Solicitor General N Venkatraman, appearing for the government, said that a comprehensive reply will be given on this issue. The Supreme Court is hearing the suo motu case, which pertains to the difficulties faced by cadets who have been excluded due to injury or disability during training.
On August 18 last year, the court had said that the defense forces should have courageous cadets, who should not be discouraged by injury or disability suffered during training. Also, the court had directed the Central Government to explore the possibility of providing insurance cover for such cases.
The Supreme Court had sought response from the Center and the Defense Forces on the problems of cadets who were excluded from military institutions on medical grounds due to disability during training.
The court said that the Central Government should explore the possibility of implementing an insurance scheme like group insurance for these cadets undergoing rigorous training in various military institutions, so that emergency situations like death or disability can be dealt with.
Apart from this, it also asked to consider increasing the existing lump sum amount (Rs 40,000 given to cadets who become disabled during training) so that their medical needs can be met.
On August 12 last year, the court had taken suo motu cognizance of a news in which the problems of these cadets were highlighted. These cadets had been a part of training in the country's premier military institutions, such as the National Defense Academy (NDA) and the Indian Military Academy (IMA). Since 1985, about 500 officer cadets have been dropped during training due to various levels of disability.
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