FASTER NAVY PROMOTIONS

Navy Sailors to get faster Promotions

The government has approved an assured career progression scheme for over 50,000 sailors of the Navy, which will help them to get faster promotions and increased salaries."As per the recommendations made by the sixth pay commission, the government has approved the ACP for sailors recruited under the non-metric entry and also carried out the review of their career profile. The move will benefit over 50,000 sailors," Navy officials said here.

The scheme will also result in prolonging the service tenure of these soldiers who now retire after putting in 20 years of service.

"After the implementation of the scheme, the sailors will get promoted upto the rank of Petty Officer (equivalent to Sargent in Air Force and Havaldar in Army) and retire after 26 years of service," they said.

Approved May 19, the career progression scheme envisages three financial up-gradations counted from the direct entry grade and will be provided to sailors on completion of eight, 16 and 24 years of service respectively, the officer in the naval headquarters here said.
"Financial upgradation under the scheme will be admissible whenever a personnel below officer rank has spent eight years continuously in the same grade pay and the hike will be applicable to the grade pay," he said.
"For example, a direct entry seaman or equivalent with a grade pay of Rs.2,000 per month at the time of joining, will get a grade pay of a leading seaman of Rs.2,400 per month after eight continuous years of sevice in this rank.
"At 16 years of service, he would get a grade pay of a petty officer of Rs.2,800 and after 24 years, he would get grade pay of Rs.4,200 of a chief petty officer," he added.
However, there will be no change in the sailor's designation, rank bagdes, employability and re-engagement criteria. However, financial benefits linked to pay would be admissible such as family accommodation allowance, house rent allowance, travel allowance and other entitlements.
Sailors, who have be granted the assured career progression benefits, will still be considered for promotion to the next rank as per vacancies and existing norms. If the personnel refused promotion or promotion-related courses wherever applicable, the assured career progression scheme too would be denied to him.
Apart from the pay benefits, a non-matric recruit also gets to serve for four or five years more in the navy, instead of retiring after 20 years of service, thereby ensuring the availability of trained manpower.