Financial Assistance for Procuring Mobility Equipment to Disabled Ex-Servicemen (All Ranks)

What is the mobility equipment assistance scheme?

Financial Assistance for Procuring Mobility Equipment to Disabled Ex-Servicemen (All Ranks) is a welfare scheme of the Kendriya Sainik Board (KSB) under the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare, Ministry of Defence. It is funded from the Armed Forces Flag Day Fund (AFFDF). According to the KSB portal, the scheme helps a disabled ex-serviceman buy a modified scooter or similar mobility equipment so that he can remain independent and mobile.

The scheme is open to ex-servicemen of all ranks, which distinguishes it from several other AFFDF/RMEWF grants that are limited to lower ranks. Its purpose is narrow and practical: to fund a mobility aid for those whose disability seriously limits movement.

How much does the scheme pay?

According to the KSB portal, the assistance is up to a maximum of Rs 1 lakh per ex-serviceman, with effect from 1 April 2022. The money is meant to cover the cost of a modified scooter or comparable mobility equipment.

The life of the equipment is fixed at 10 years from the date of purchase, so a beneficiary can claim the assistance again only after that period expires.

Who is eligible for the mobility equipment assistance?

You can apply if:

• You are an ex-serviceman of any rank.
• You have a disability of 50% or more.
• You are capable of personally using the mobility equipment.
• Your case is recommended by your Zila Sainik Board.
• You are not covered under a similar scheme of the Army, Navy or Air Force.

You cannot apply if:

• Your disability is less than 50%.
• You are already covered under a similar Army, Navy or Air Force mobility scheme.
• You are unable to personally use the equipment.
• The disability is not certified by the Armed Forces medical authority.

The disability must be established through a disability certificate from the Armed Forces medical authority.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the mobility equipment assistance

1. Obtain a disability certificate from the Armed Forces medical authority confirming 50% or more disability.
2. Get a financial estimate for the modified scooter or mobility equipment from an authorised dealer.
3. Submit your application at your Zila Sainik Board with your discharge book, ESM card, disability certificate, dealer's estimate and bank details.
4. The Zila Sainik Welfare Officer (ZSWO) scrutinises the application and forwards it to the KSB Secretariat.
5. The KSB Secretariat processes the case and obtains the Secretary's approval.
6. On approval, payment is made in full advance; you must acknowledge receipt within 60 days.

Since April 2022, a post-dated cheque with a conditional deposit clause is taken upfront as a safeguard, pending submission of purchase documents.

How the Armed Forces Flag Day Fund supports this scheme

The scheme draws on the Armed Forces Flag Day Fund (AFFDF), a fund administered by the Kendriya Sainik Board to support the welfare and rehabilitation of ex-servicemen, war widows and their dependants. AFFDF is built largely from contributions collected around Armed Forces Flag Day (7 December) each year, and it finances several grants, for the treatment of serious diseases, for penury relief, and for mobility equipment such as this one.

Because the money is welfare funding rather than an entitlement, each case is approved individually on the recommendation of the Zila Sainik Board and the KSB Secretariat. The Rs 1 lakh ceiling is a maximum, not a fixed grant, so the actual amount sanctioned is tied to the dealer's estimate for the equipment the ex-serviceman genuinely needs and can use.

Who this scheme is not for

This is a rehabilitation grant for individual disabled ex-servicemen, not a general disability pension and not a benefit for serving personnel. Serving soldiers, dependants who are not the ex-serviceman himself, and ex-servicemen whose mobility needs are already met through Army, Navy or Air Force channels should look to those routes instead. The scheme also does not fund routine medical treatment, that is handled by separate AFFDF and ECHS provisions.

Why applications get rejected

• Disability below 50%, or not certified by the Armed Forces medical authority.
• Duplication: already covered under an Army/Navy/Air Force mobility scheme.
• Applying before the 10-year life of previously funded equipment has ended.
• Incomplete documents, such as a missing dealer estimate or disability certificate.

Help and contact

• Portal: ksb.gov.in (Procuring Mobility Equipment)
• Apply through: your nearest Zila Sainik Board and its Zila Sainik Welfare Officer
• Secretariat: Kendriya Sainik Board, West Block-IV, RK Puram, New Delhi: see the Contact Us page on ksb.gov.in for current numbers.

Because the scheme is administered through Zila Sainik Boards, the ZSWO is the first point of contact for eligibility checks, the required disability certification and application help.

How to check your application status

This scheme does not run on an online tracking portal with a case-status login. Since the application physically moves from your Zila Sainik Board (ZSB) to the KSB Secretariat for the Secretary's approval, status checks are done by contacting the office holding your file at that stage.

1. Start with your Zila Sainik Welfare Officer (ZSWO). Your ZSB is the office you submitted the application to, and it is also the office that forwards it onward, so the ZSWO can tell you whether your file is still with the ZSB, has already been sent to the KSB Secretariat, or has come back with an objection.
2. Keep your acknowledgement or receipt copy handy. Ask for a receiving stamp, diary number, or dated acknowledgement when you submit the application. Quoting this reference when you follow up helps the ZSWO or the Secretariat locate your file quickly instead of searching by name alone.
3. Follow up with the KSB Secretariat once the ZSB confirms forwarding. Once the ZSWO confirms the case has left the ZSB, the KSB Secretariat in New Delhi is processing it for the Secretary's approval. Contact details for the Secretariat are listed on the Contact Us page of ksb.gov.in; a phone or written query citing your diary number and ZSB is the usual route, since there is no applicant-facing online case tracker.
4. Watch for the payment and acknowledgement step. If your case is approved, the assistance is released as a full advance payment, and you are required to acknowledge receipt within 60 days. Getting a communication about this payment, or a post-dated cheque request as the upfront safeguard, is itself a sign the case has been approved and reached the disbursement stage.
5. If there is no movement for an extended period, go back to the ZSWO in person or in writing rather than only calling, since a welfare case that has stalled for a document query is often resolved fastest by visiting the ZSB directly with the missing paper.

Because approvals are decided case by case on the Zila Sainik Board's recommendation, processing times are not published, so periodic follow-up through the ZSWO remains the most reliable way to know where an application stands.