Rohtak’s Shanan Dhaka tops among girls in Defence Academy examination

Chandigarh, June 22

Hailing from the Sundana village of Rohtak district, Shanan Dhaka, (19), has topped the Pune-based National Defence Academy (NDA) entrance exam among women. This will be the first women’s batch of the NDA.

Pursuing BA from Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Delhi, Shanan was clear about her aim. “Either I was to join civil or defence services. As it was declared in September last year that women could also appear in the NDA exam, I immediately applied for it. Otherwise, the next window to enter defence services was to come in Combined Defence Services (CDS) exam after graduation, that is, after three years,” said Shanan.

Was keen to join civil or defence services

Either I was to join civil or defence services. As it was declared in September last year that women could also appear in the NDA exam, I immediately applied for it. —Shanan Dhaka

She scored 98.2 per cent in Class XII and 97.4 per cent in Class X.

On September 22, 2021, the Supreme Court ruled that women candidates were allowed to appear for the November exam as “gender equality” issues could not be postponed. The exam was held on November 14, 2021.

“My basics were strong. I was a good student. I didn’t need to prepare hard,” said Shanan.

“For the interview, I came to know it would be a personality-based test. There was a need to reflect the natural personality. You couldn’t pretend there. Besides, I started jogging and doing other exercises as well,” she added.

Shanan’s overall rank is 10th, and among women, she is the topper.

Her grandfather Subedar Chanderbhan Dhaka (retd) and father Hony Naik Subedar Vijay Kumar Dhaka (retd) have been behind her inspiration to join the Army.

“Besides, I stayed in Army cantonments of Roorkee, Delhi, Chandimandir, and N-Area in Chandigarh. People respect Army personnel and trust them. The services help in your holistic development, including mental, physical, and emotional. You can serve your nation with pride,” she said.

Shanan’s elder sister is also in the Military Nursing Service. Presently, the family is living in Zirakpur.

Elated father Vijay Kumar Dhaka reacted, “Both daughters were good in studies and showed their skills. There was an opportunity to enter services after Class XII and Shanan clinched it.”

Shanan’s younger sister is in Class V. When asked about her, the father said, “She will be free to choose her path. There will be no pressure on her.”