Government extends health scheme to officer cadets injured during military training

The government has decided to extend health facilities under the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) to officer cadets who are forced to leave training due to medical disabilities caused or worsened by military training.

Cadets who enter academies like the National Defence Academy (NDA), Indian Military Academy (IMA) and Officers' Training Academy (OTA) with the dream of serving the nation sometimes suffer lifelong disabilities during training. Until now, they were not entitled to ECHS benefits since they are not given ex-servicemen (ESM) status.

The new decision will cover cadets who have already been medically boarded out before completing training, as well as those who may face similar situations in the future. A government statement said the move was taken on “humanitarian grounds” to reduce the financial and emotional stress faced by families.

These cadets will now be able to access free OPD care at ECHS polyclinics, as well as cashless treatment for OPD, IPD, and investigations in ECHS-empanelled hospitals. The scheme will apply only to the individual cadet, who must accept ECHS rules, and they should not be part of any other government health scheme. Importantly, the usual one-time subscription fee of Rs 1.2 lakh, charged from ESM officers, will not be levied on these cadets.

Though only a small number of cadets are affected each year, the burden on families is considerable. At present, such cadets are entitled to a monthly ex-gratia payment, along with a disability award depending on the severity of disability (20%–100%). With this move, they will also gain access to capless, cashless healthcare through the ECHS network.

Launched in 2003, ECHS provides healthcare to over 63 lakh beneficiaries across the country through 30 regional centres, 448 polyclinics, and more than 3,000 empanelled hospitals.

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