The Confederation of Ex-Paramilitary Forces Welfare Associations will hold a protest march at Jantar Mantar on September 25 demanding salaries equivalent to that in the army for serving paramilitary personnel.

National coordinator of the association Ranbir Singh on Monday said they had been demanding salaries on a par with the army for paramilitary personnel and also an exemption of goods and services tax (GST) on central police canteens on a par with the defence forces.

“There are over 12 lakh paramilitary personnel serving in paramilitary forces like the CRPF, BSF, and ITBP and they have also been posted along the China and Pakistan frontiers. The salary given to them is very less compared to an army jawan,” Singh said.

“We are demanding salaries of our paramilitary jawans to be on a par with the army. It has been out longstanding demand but the government has failed to pay any heed,” he said.

Singh said the demonstrators would also press for GST exemption for central police canteens. He said the Centre had in the past turned down this demand despite several communications to the finance ministry and the home ministry.

“We have long been demanding GST exemption on a par with the armed (defence) forces so that the personnel working in very sensitive and inhospitable terrain like borders and Maoist-hit places can procure household items at nominal rates but the ministries have rejected this,” he said.

The defence canteens that cater to the army, navy and air force personnel are exempt from paying GST.

Over 1,700 central police canteens across the country cater to the families of the 12-lakh strong seven paramilitary forces — the BSF, ITBP, CRPF, SSB, Assam Rifles, CISF and the NSG.