Stomping feet, women officers storm male bastion

New Delhi, March 7

Almost 30 years after the Indian Army started inducting women as officers, important positions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the Kashmir valley and other locations are now occupied by women.

Earlier this month, the Army began assigning women officers to command roles for the first time. Around 50 of them will head units in operational regions, including forward areas. This will happen in both the Northern and Eastern Commands. However, these are non-combat positions.

The role of women in frontline areas is otherwise growing. Today, there are women assigned to specific roles in aviation, signals, air defence, beside intelligence corps in forward locations. Other than infantry and armoured corps, women are taken in as officers in all streams. The Army has already deployed a woman in helicopter unit in Kashmir.

In January, Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande said the Army had moved a proposal to have woman inducted in the Regiment of Artillery.

Among the important locations where women are posted is Arunachal Pradesh. Lt Col Priyadarshini is at a location there. She is tasked with reading satellite imagery along the LAC. “It is an enriching experience and has added to my intellectual personality,” the officer said over the phone. She joined the Army as short service commission in 2008 and opted to serve full time.

Capt Deeksha C Mudadevannanava, an Army doctor, has undergone gruelling induction into the special forces. She is stationed at a unit in the Himalayan foothills.