Defence Minister honours veterans on 10th Veterans’ Day, reaffirms government’s commitment to ex-servicemen

New Delhi, January 14. India marked the 10th Defence Forces Veterans’ Day on January 14 with rallies, wreath-laying ceremonies, grievance redressal camps and facilitation desks held across the country, as the government paid tribute to the men and women who have served in uniform.

The main event was held at the Manekshaw Centre in Delhi Cantonment, where Defence Minister Rajnath Singh addressed around 2,500 veterans from the Delhi-NCR region. Senior military leadership, including Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi, Air Chief Marshal AP Singh and Army Vice Chief Lt Gen Pushpendra Singh, along with former service chiefs and veterans, were also present.

Addressing the gathering, Singh hailed ex-servicemen as the “living pillars of national consciousness” and urged them to continue guiding the youth, supporting civil administration in emergencies and strengthening the spirit of patriotism at the grassroots. He said the experience, leadership and values of veterans were invaluable at a time when India is striving to become a strong, self-reliant and developed nation.

Recalling the sacrifices of soldiers who served in Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka nearly four decades ago, Singh said the government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi was now giving due recognition to the Indian Peacekeeping Force (IPKF). He noted that IPKF soldiers are being honoured at the National War Memorial in New Delhi, and referred to Modi’s 2015 visit to the IPKF Memorial in Sri Lanka as a mark of respect to their sacrifice.

The Defence Minister reiterated the government’s commitment to veterans’ welfare, pointing to the implementation of One Rank One Pension (OROP) and the expansion of the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS). He said telemedicine and wider outreach of healthcare facilities were being strengthened to ensure that age or distance does not become a barrier to treatment for veterans, especially in rural and remote areas.

Singh also highlighted steps being taken to support veterans after retirement, including skill development, employment opportunities in public enterprises, encouragement for entrepreneurship and tailored housing and loan schemes.

“A soldier never truly retires,” he said, adding that the welfare and well-being of veterans remained the government’s “moral and emotional responsibility”.

Secretary (Ex-Servicemen Welfare) Sukriti Likhi said Veterans’ Day was not just ceremonial but a reminder of the enduring bond between the nation and its soldiers. Noting that about 60,000 soldiers retire every year, taking the total number of veterans to around 3.5 million, she said ensuring their dignity and well-being was a major national responsibility. She added that ECHS now provides medical services to 64 lakh beneficiaries, while improvements have been made in pension delivery, resettlement and training programmes.

On the occasion, annual magazines of the three services’ veterans’ directorates – Samman (Army), Sagar Samvad (Navy) and Vayu Samvedna (Air Force) – were also released.

Across the country, Veterans’ Day was marked with rallies and wreath-laying ceremonies in places such as Rajouri, Amritsar, Lucknow, Ranchi, Guwahati, Pune, Goa and Kochi. All 34 Rajya Sainik Boards and 434 Zila Sainik Boards organised events, while help desks and stalls were set up by the armed forces, government agencies, banks and employment bodies to provide on-the-spot grievance redressal and assistance to veterans.

Veterans’ Day is observed every year on January 14 to honour the legacy of Field Marshal KM Cariappa, India’s first Commander-in-Chief, who retired on this day in 1953.