File photo of Nirmala Sitharaman.

DEHRADUN: Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman who was in the city on Monday said Congress had only given Rs 500 crore under the One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme but PM Modi had deposited Rs 35,000 crore under OROP into the accounts of retired defence personnel.

The minister, who touched the feet of the war widows who were felicitated at a function held in the city, drew applause from the gathering comprising largely of retired service personnel.

While Sitharaman refrained from mentioning the recent air strikes, she reiterated that the BJP government was with the forces.

“Beware of WhatsApp messages that are spreading lies about OROP, pensions, defence and civil service equalisation and medical facilities for ex-servicemen,” she said adding that “our government is committed to respect and take care of our retired and serving defence personnel.”

(Inputs from PTI)

