Women in Command Roles of the Indian Army

• The Indian army elevated female commanders to commanding positions within their respective arms and services for the first time.
• This choice would also encourage more women to enlist in the Indian Army, which will worsen the gender pay gap and support the organization's efforts to foster diversity and inclusivity.

About the news:

• A crucial development for the first time, the Indian Army qualified 108 women officers to lead troops in their different branches and services.
• In a variety of arms and services, including engineers, signals, army air defense, intelligence corps, army service corps, army ordnance corps, and electrical and mechanical engineers, women officers were chosen from the 1992 to 2006 batch.
• The Army Ordnance Corps, Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, and the Corps of Engineers are the ones with the most openings.

A long battle:

• Induction of women into the Indian Army began in 1992 as non-medical officers, while induction of women into the Indian Army Medical Corps began in 1993.
• In 2010, the Delhi High Court declared the Indian Army's policy of prohibiting women from serving in combat roles to be discriminatory and unconstitutional.
• In 2013, the Supreme Court affirmed the Indian Army's decision to bar women from some combat roles, citing social views and a lack of infrastructure as reasons why the Indian Army was not prepared for women in combat roles.
• 2016 saw the Indian Army make the announcement that it would start allowing women to serve in combat capacities in a few of its armed forces, beginning with the Corps of Military Police.
• The Supreme Court ruled in 2017 that women ought to have equal opportunity in the Army, including in combat situations.
• 2020: The Indian Army said that all positions, including combat responsibilities, would be open to women.
• Induction of female fighter pilots into the Indian army's short service commission begins in 2021.

In 2020, what decision did the Supreme Court make?

• The Army modified its regulations in 2019 to allow women who served on a short service commission (SSC), who would have otherwise retired after 14 years of service, to choose a permanent commission instead.
• However, this was only applicable to the groups of female officers beginning their careers in the Army in 2020; it was not retroactive.
• With the historic Supreme Court ruling in 2020, women officers were given permanent commissions with backward effect.
• This paved the way for their continued development and advancement in the Army, which has recently made leadership and higher management courses available to women.

Benefits of Women in the Army:

• Increasing diversity can improve military effectiveness and decision-making because women bring a new perspective and set of talents to the force.
• The inclusion of women contradicts the conventional notion that they are helpless and less capable than males.
• Increased morale: The induction of women can increase the morale of female troops and foster a more welcoming environment for all soldiers.
• Better societal representation: The Indian Army is designed to defend and serve the entire population, and by having a more representative force, it would be able to better comprehend and meet the requirements of the community.

Challenges faced by the women in Army:

• Physical requirements: Women may find it difficult to meet the same physical standards as males due to the demanding physical nature of military duty.
• Opportunities for women in the Indian Army have been scarce, especially in combat roles, which has hindered their ability to grow professionally.
• Lack of support: Women in the Indian Army have reported feeling underappreciated by their male peers and superiors, which can make it challenging for them to be successful in their jobs.
• Limited representation: There aren't many women to look up to and women are underrepresented in leadership roles in the Indian Army.

What Does It Mean to Command a Unit?

• A colonel's promotion makes an officer qualified to lead troops in battle.
• Because it is a high-ranking job in the military and also gives the officer direct contact with troops on the ground, the position of colonel is much sought after.
• This engagement gives the Colonel a rare opportunity not available in higher-ranking posts like Brigadier or Major General to take a more hands-on approach to leadership and decision-making.

What about the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Navy?

• All Navy branches now have female officers, and they will eventually be qualified for permanent commission.
• As they enter the service and are qualified for permanent commission, female officers will be allowed to command air squadrons and ships in addition to shore-based forces.
• All branches of the IAF, including the new weapon systems branch and the fighter stream, are now open to female officers.
• They will be qualified to command units in the future as they are given permanent commissions based on their eligibility and available positions.

Where In the army, women are not permitted?

• The Army still does not allow women to serve as foot soldiers in border conflicts in the core combat arms of Infantry, Mechanized Infantry, and Armored Corps.
• The fact that male troops have frequently been kidnapped as prisoners of war and subjected to torture by the enemy is a major cause of this resistance.
• However, the Army recently agreed to allow women to serve in the combat support arm, the Corps of Artillery.

Way Forward

• The Indian Army should take steps to establish a more friendly atmosphere for women, such as increasing the number of women-only barracks and offering childcare facilities, even though allowing women to serve on an equal footing in the army is a progressive move.
• Although there have been difficulties in integrating women into the Indian Army, the general trend needs to be supported because so many women have been successful in their careers and made significant contributions to the armed forces.
• The Indian Army should try to eliminate any biases that may exist and modify the military's culture to be more welcoming of women.