After the Delhi High Court instructed the government to bring about parity in the retirement age of CAPF personnel, the Supreme Court has offered another gift: On Tuesday, it directed the government to recognize all Central Armed Police Forces -- CRPF, BSF, ITBP, CISF, RPF, and SSB -- as "organised services", saying it will remove stagnation, ensuring promotion and other service-related benefits to officers in the same post.

It also held that Group "A" officers of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) should be given all benefits including non-functional financial upgradation (NFFU) from 2006 in terms of the 6th Pay Commission. The top court upheld the Delhi High Court's two verdicts by which it had granted "organised service" status to Railway Protection Force (RPF), CRPF, BSF, ITBP, and SSB.

NFFU is a concept introduced in the 6th pay commission and was granted to what the government termed as Group "A" organised services.

Under NFFU, if all the officers of a particular batch cannot move up the ladder owing to lack of vacancies but only one does, the others will automatically get financial upgradation like the one promoted. However, it would involve only a financial upgrade but not rank or perks. The top court's order will benefit thousands of Group A officers of central paramilitary forces like Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and Central Industrial Security Forces (CISF).