Missile Man & Manek Shaw

Thyagarajan · Jan 28, 2021

Missile Man & Manek Shaw

When Dr.Abdul Kalam was the President, he visited Coonoor. On reaching, he came to know that Field Marshall Sam Manekshaw was admitted in Military Hospital there.

Dr.Kalam wanted to visit Sam, which was unscheduled. Arrangements were made.

At the bedside, Kalam spent abt 15 minutes talking to Sam & enquiring about his health.

Just before leaving Kalam asked Sam "Are you comfortable? Is there anything I could do? Do you have any grievance? or any requirement that would make you more comfortable?"

Sam said "Yes Yr Excellency, I hv one grievance".

Shocked with concern & anguish, Kalam asked him what it was.
Sam replied
"Sir, my grievance is that I am not able to get up & Salute my most respected President of my beloved country".

Kalam held Sam's hand as both were in tears.

But the remaining part of the tale with regarding this meeting is that Sam did tell APJ that he was not paid the pension of the Field Marshall’s rank till then, for nearly twenty years.

An aghast President went to Delhi and passed the pension with arrears within a week and sent the cheque of nearly Rs.1.25 crores through the Defence Secretary by a special plane to Wellington, Ooty, where Sam was ailing.

That is the greatness of APJ. But then Sam received the cheque and promptly donated it to the Army Relief fund.

Who the Nation would salute first?
Indeed those real heroes are seldom seen today.

Metamorphic · Jan 28, 2021

Some personalities never cease to impress us ...Salute them both!

Hopikrishnan · Jan 29, 2021

What !! If a retired bigshot was not given a crore of pension due, how many low level grunts retired from the armed forces are being short-changed <== is the question that Abdul Kalam should have followed up after sending the cheque. Manek Show donating the money the relief-fund could be a hint to tell the nation exactly that.

Stories like this do confirm the plight of the most who aren't somebody-enough to know somebody who could get them justice.

Rihana · Jan 29, 2021

Manekshaw's pension was never withheld but he did not receive the special pay that all marshals of the armed forces receive. Marshals technically never retire so they should not stop receiving their pay and related benefits. The Rs. 1.something crores cheque was for back wages.

Field marshal is the highest attainable rank in the Indian Army. It is a ceremonial / war time rank. There have been two Indian field marshals to date: Kodandera Madappa Cariappa, the 1st Indian Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army in 1986 (much after his retirement), and Sam Manekshaw in 1973.
Source.
Also: The Quint.

Thanks for sharing, Thyagu. Ended up reading some nostalgic news stories, opinions that IG was insecure about Manekshaw and reminiscences of their conversations and meetings.

Thyagarajan · Jan 30, 2021

@Rihana dharma
Thank you sister for visiting here and just checked in. You are right about that it was not pension but back wages for field marshals never retire.
It was not he was denined pension. He was getting pension. But the fact is technically Field Marshal never retires. So he was entitled to his full wages. That was not paid. so what late Kalam got him is the past wages that was withheld. FM Manekshaw’s daughter Maja Daruwala, once told, “he was paid a pension but since a field marshal never retires, his full pay and benefits were due, and this was given to him after President Abdul Kalam’s intervention.”
@Hopikrishnan
Ordinary folks would be left high & dry in the bureaucratic system not only in army but even in civil establishments. In avadi tank factory I got my salary on the due dates but same army in another discipline for around three months, I could not get my salary despite personally I expressed to higher ups. Life is like that for not being "Some body".
Thanks and Regards.