New Delhi, May 5
A revised pay package for the armed forces personnel, including enhanced military service pay for those below officer rank, would be finalised at a crucial meeting to be chaired by the Cabinet secretary K.M. Chandrashekar tomorrow.

The meeting would be attended by the Navy Chief, Admiral Sureesh Mehta, Air Chief Marshal F.H. Major and Army Chief-General Deepak Kapoor. The meeting would also be attended by other secretaries in the empowered group of secretaries set up by the government to go into anomalies in the pay packages of armed forces personnel. The meeting was scheduled to be held today but was put off till tomorrow, sources said.

Meanwhile, defence minister A.K. Antony said there was no “large scale” departures from the services despite the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations come up to their expectations.

“The Army personnel are allowed to leave service on account of various reasons like suppression, extreme compassionate grounds, low medical category and failure to acquire minimum educational qualification,” the minister said in reply to a written question in the Lok Sabha.

He put the number of officers who were permitted to leave services due to various reasons during the last five years at 3474. — PTI