Army Chief General Dalbir Singh today said a proposal has been sent to the government to establish regional hospitals across the country for army veterans.
"We have sent a proposal to the government. We have discussed with them, throughout India we will start regional veteran'shospitals ... Ten in the first phase. We have got straight awayacceptance for four, others will follow," Singh said.
Wishing that veterans get good medical facility, he said, "Karnataka may also get one regional veterans hospital."
General Singh was speaking after attending a 'mega veterans' rally here, in an effort to reach out to veterans and war widows and to resolve the problems faced by them.
Listing out various initiatives taken by the Army forthe health benefit of army veterans, he also said a special cardiac surgery and dental centre had been openedfor veterans in (Army) RR (Research and Referral) hospitals.
Stating that it was our duty to take care of our veteransand war widows, General Singh "we will do it".
The rally was attended by about 1,800 veterans and 'veer naris' (war widows) from Kodagu district andneighbouring areas and was organised by Karnataka and Kerala sub-area.
It was held in close coordination with the state administration and Rajya Sainik Boards.
Speaking about "one rank, one pension", General Singh said "what we have got is in accordance with what we had expected".
He said "remittance of arrears has started into the accounts, war widows will get it in one go and veteransabove 80 years in one or two installments. Others will get inthree or four installments."
Noting that a judicial commission had been set up to resolve some of the pending issues of OROP, he said it would be visiting about 20 locations to interact with ex-servicemen, first being Chandigarh.
Earlier, the Army Chief paid homage to late Field Marshal K M Cariappa, at the Cariappa Memorial Park and visited 'Sunny Side', the abode of late General K S Thimayya.
Cariappa was the first Indian Army Commander-in-Chief, while Thimayya was the Army Chief from 1957 to 1961 in the crucial years leading up to the conflict with China in 1962.
The General along with his wife Namita Suhag, President of Army WivesWelfare Association (AWWA), and Madhulika Rawat, RegionalPresident AWWA, also felicitated the war widows at the event.
Calling Kodagu the "great land of warriors" for producing heroes like Cariappa, Thimayya and several others, he recalled about him meeting Cariappa in Bengaluru as a young officer.
The Army Chief during the rally also positively responded to various issues and demands raised by Lieutenant General (Retd) P C Nanda on behalf of veterans and Army community from the region.
The rally among others included a fully equipped medical camp, pension clinic, canteen service, Army Welfare Placement Organisation, Army Veteran's Cell, Aadhar card registration and bank loan facilities, officials said, adding focus was to resolve anomalies in disbursement of pension, land and legal cases being confronted by the veterans and their families.
