SC takes suo motu note of plight of cadets suffering disability during military training

The Supreme Court has taken suo motu cognisance of hardships faced by cadets medically discharged from NDA, IMA and other institutes due to training-related disabilities. Around 500 such cadets since 1985 lack ex-servicemen status, receiving inadequate ex-gratia instead of healthcare benefits

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has taken suo motu cognisance of difficulties faced by cadets, who were medically discharged from military institutes on account of disabilities suffered during training programmes.

A bench of Justices BV Nagarathna and R Mahadevan will be hearing the case on Monday which was registered on August 12 after a media report flagged the issue of these cadets, who were once part of training at the nation’s top military institutes such as the National Defence Academy (NDA) and Indian Military Academy (IMA).

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According to the media report, there are around 500 officer cadets who have been medically discharged from these military institutes since 1985, due to varying degrees of disability incurred during training, and are now staring at mounting medical bills with an ex-gratia monthly payment that’s far short of what they need.

It said at the NDA alone, there are around 20 such cadets, who were medically discharged in just five years, between 2021 and July 2025.

The media report further highlighted the plight of these cadets because as per rules, they are not entitled to the status of ex-servicemen (ESM), which would have made them eligible under the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) for free treatment at military facilities and empanelled hospitals, since their disabilities took place during training before they were commissioned as officers.

It had said that unlike soldiers in this category, who are entitled to ESM status, all that these officer cadets get now is an ex-gratia payment of up to Rs 40,000 per month depending on extent of disability — an amount that falls far short of basic needs.