The Defence Ministry has announced the names of seven corporations it is forming by splitting the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB). These structures will control the 41 factories under the OFB.

The new corporations are Munitions India Ltd, Armoured Vehicles Nigam Ltd, Advanced Weapons and Equipment India Ltd, Troop Comforts Ltd, Yantra India Ltd, India Optel Ltd and Gliders India Ltd.

The new establishments will start functioning from October 1 as the OFB, started in 1979, winds up operations. “The new Defence Public Sector Units (DPSUs) have been incorporated as government companies (wholly owned by the Government of India) with limited liability by shares under the Companies Act 2013 with registered offices and corporate offices,” a Defence Ministry order, based on the Cabinet decision of June 16, said.

The Centre has also decided to transfer all OFB employees (Group A, B and C) to the new corporations on terms of foreign service without any deputation allowance initially for two years.

All India Defence Employees Federation general secretary, C Srikumar said 99.41 per cent of OFB employees had rejected the Centre’s decision to corporatize the Ordnance Factories in a referendum.

“The employees will observe October 1 as a Black Day and, as a mark of protest, will boycott their lunch. The government letter quotes that the employees are being sent on deemed deputation under CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972, but this rule is not applicable to more than 40,000 employees who are in the New Pension Scheme. If the government wants to send them on deemed deputation, they should all be brought under CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972. The AIDEF has challenged the government’s arbitrary decision in the Madras High Court," Srikumar said in a statement.