On Saturday when Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi arrived in Srinagar to launch UMEED — Women’s empowerment Project, a group of 81 women constables of Jammu and Kashmir police completed their year-long basic recruit training course at the Sher-e-Kashmir Police Academy in Udhampur.
After completing the last leg of the passing-out parade, the woman commandos were upbeat and took a pledge to punish all those who would exploit weaker sex and harass them.
Trained by professional instructors in basic commando training the energetic lot of the fresh recruits was rearing to go.
Drawn from various districts of Jammu and ladakh division, the woman constables were imparted training in handling non-lethal weapons, tricky law and order situation across the State and especially how to deal with the rising cases of crime against women.
In the coming days as the Amarnath Yatra would be starting from June 28, it is expected that these trained woman commandos would also be given an opportunity to serve the pilgrims and ensure their safety at base camps set up at different places.
To utilise their expertise in the counter insurgency operations, the women constables were also imparted training on how to deal/interrogate women over ground workers and their sympathisers.
Interacting with the mediapersons after attending the passing-out parade on Saturday, woman constables shared their experiences of rigorous training and complimented their instructors and faculty at the police academy for shaping their personalities.
“When we first arrived here a year ago we were little scared. We were shy in nature as we had not stepped out of our places and lived in remote villages. But as our training started we were comfortable and started enjoying the course. Today I can proudly say on behalf of others as well that the year-long
training has completely changed our personality and we are
confident of dealing with any situation at hand,” said Asmat Jahan, who ranked third during the training course.
“We are second to none, we are equal to our male counterparts and we too are fully equipped and equally trained to handle the tough challenges while discharging our duties,” said second ranker Nazma Bano.
A day before attending the passing-out parade the woman constables participated in the mock drill, which included crossing hurdles and clearing obstructions in the form of rope way, walk over the hanging bridge, crossing mesh of concertina wires etc.
Displaying perfect sense of team spirit, the women constables completed the whole drill showcasing their maneuvering skills to the satisfaction of their instructors. They claimed that in the beginning they had poor stamina but now they can easily run a distance of 10-15 km and handle weapons independently.
“Our instructors have improved our physical/mental strength and prepared us to handle the challenges of routine policing,” they claimed.
Kunzes Dolma of leh who commanded the parade was upbeat too and ready to perform her duty at the earliest.
Director SK Police Academy Udhampur Farooq Khan took the salute of the parade and also wished all the best to the lady constables for their better future in the police force. The Director emphasised that the present 5th batch of BRTC lady constables is the best one and will prove an asset for the force as well as for the country. He said these woman constables have been skillfully trained by the instructors at the police academy and are battle ready to handle any kind of precarious situation with thorough knowledge of policing and law and order in the coming days.