Efficacy of Women Officers in the Indian Army

The issues/concerns raised regarding the performance of women commanding officers need to be addressed holistically.

Firstly, it doesn’t appear to be just a knee-jerk response but rather a thoroughly debated and based on feedback from the environment down the chain of command.

Secondly, it’s a matter of serious concern as the repercussions could be disastrous, if not addressed holistically.

Thirdly, a board of officers, including the experts from DIPR/ assessors who served in SSBs should analyse the dossiers of these women officers which contains report related to OLQs, especially pertaining to the social adjustment & dynamism and reports from the OTA.

I would also like to highlight a few aspects in this regard:

1. Selection of women candidates in SSB: Since the women were not considered for combat arms and only short service commission, few concessions were given in individual obstacles, which otherwise gives valuable inputs related to physical fitness and mental stamina. Therefore the gender concession now must be revoked and Gender Neutrality be assured in totality.

2. The making of an officer is a three-stage process. The first stage is a selection of potential candidates. The second stage is training in the Academy and the third stage is grooming in the units. At every stage, there has been gender-related concessions.

Recommendations:

1. The Gender Neutrality must be ensured forthwith at all the stages without any prejudices.

2. Selection, training, and grooming must be reviewed to make them battle-ready and fit for command.

3. Postings and courses must be balanced as being done for male counterparts.

Conclusion:

The women’s cadre undoubtedly has been a boon for the forces in many ways. However, with changing roles and new challenges, we must address these very pertinent issues holistically which is in the interest of the organisation as well as the women officers.

About the Author:

Lt Col Amit Srivastava, SM Retd is an alumnus of Defence Institute of Psychological Research (DIPR) and has served as Sr. GTO at Prayagraj and Kapurthala. He has assessed around 15,000 candidates in SSB and has been mentoring defence aspirants since 2020.