Defence Ministry Grants ECHS Medical Benefits to Disabled Officer Cadets

The Defence Ministry has made a significant decision by approving the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) benefits for officer cadets who become disabled and are subsequently discharged during their military training.

Until this development, such cadets were not eligible for ECHS benefits due to their lack of ex-servicemen (ESM) status. The Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare (DESW) has now issued a directive that allows these cadets to access free medical care at military hospitals, ECHS polyclinics, and approved private facilities.

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court took notice of these issues on its own accord, seeking responses from both the Centre and the armed forces.

The Defence Ministry's directive indicates that cadets who are discharged due to disabilities caused or worsened by military training will now qualify for these benefits. Unlike ex-servicemen officers, they will not need to pay the one-time ECHS subscription fee of ₹1.2 lakh.

However, the medical facilities will be extended solely to the affected cadet and not to their dependents. Officials have specified that this allowance is a special one-time measure and does not represent a general entitlement.

Currently, all ex-servicemen enjoy ECHS benefits, but cadets who became disabled before commissioning have been excluded from this arrangement, even when their disabilities were directly related to military training.

While the new policy addresses urgent medical needs, cadets are still advocating for disability pensions and full ex-servicemen status, which would provide them with long-term resettlement and welfare benefits.