With the government taking measures to give women equal roles as their male counterparts, the Defence Ministry announced that for the first time ever, the women officers of the Territorial Army (TA) will be eligible to serve along the LoC with Pakistan. This progressive policy is aimed at enhancing the scope of employment of women officers and meeting their professional aspirations. This gives them an opportunity to train and serve under the same conditions as their male counterparts, in a wide range of units and appointments.
TA engineer regiments are responsible for the maintenance of the LoC fence and they began inducting women officers in 2019. Employed graduates from 18-42 years of age are eligible to join TA, which is a part of the regular army.
The armed forces have taken several initiatives and measures this year to promote gender equality within their ranks – assigning women to command roles, grooming for future leadership positions and to be a part of the regiment of artillery. The government is working on ensuring maximum participation of women in next year’s Republic Day parade.
Women in uniform are no longer on the fringes. They are being assigned important roles on par with their male counterparts. They are flying fighter planes, commanding units on the front line, being inducted in the PBOR (personnel below office rank) cadre, serving on board warships, and undergoing training at the National Defence Academy.