In 1973, the Indira Gandhi led Congress (I) terminated ‘One Rank One Pension’ the basis for deciding pension of Indian Armed Forces Personnel ‘which had been in vogue for 26 years since independence’ through an ex parte administrative order. In addition, the Government, on the basis of the report of third Pay commission, from which Armed Forces representation was excluded, and which was dominated by bureaucrats, increased the pension of civilians, who retired at 58, from 30 to 50 percent, a net increase of 20 percent; and reduced the pension of soldier, Non Commissioned Officers (NCOs) and Junior commissioned Officers (JCOs), by 20 percent, from 70 to 50 percent of basic pay, with the caveat that for full pension the minimum service was 33 years. But as soldiers in 1973 retired after 15 years service, at the age of 33–36, they got less than 30 percent of the pay as pension. Soldiers pension was thus decreased not by 20 percent but 40 percent from 70 to 30 percent. In addition to down grading military pensions, the government down graded the status of soldier by equating "infantry soldier with less than three years' service" with a "semi-skilled/unskilled labour". The decision was announced two months after Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, who led the army in the victorious 1971 war, retired from service.&lt;ref name="V Mahalingam, 21/9"&gt;&lt;/ref&gt; The reason for depressing the armed Forces pensions, which continues to rankle veterans and servings personnel, given by the Congress I government was that it wanted to ensure ‘equivalence’ of Armed Forces pensions with civilians.