In a significant move, the Army will recruit more than 200 women and grant them permanent commission in various branches, which are so far exclusive domain of male officers. This decision will address the long-standing grievance of women officers who have to quit the Army after 15 years of service as short service commission(SSC) officers.
The far reaching step was approved in the five-day long Army Commanders’ Conference last week after the top brass reviewed two papers prepared in this regard by the Army Training Command (ARTRAC) and South-Western Command.
Giving details here on Monday, officials said the Army will now open more avenues for permanent commission for women in streams like Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (EME), Ordnance Corps and Intelligence Corps, Army Service Corps and Army Aviation Corps.
At present, most women officers numbering 1,214 will serve 15 years in these branches and retire as SSC officers after attaining the rank of lt Colonel. They are inducted as permanent commissioned officers in only two branches like Judge and Advocate General(JAG) and Army Education Corps where they can rise to rank of lt General.
While the Army has agreed in principle to induct more women officers, the top commanders, however, wanted a more detailed review of practical issues and asked the South Western Command to come up with solutions.
The South Western Command had interviewed more than 400 women officers besides their commanding
officers over the last two years for this study before tabling
the report.
The commanders flagged some issues like absence from duty to raise a family and its impact on the overall performance of the unit, tenure of posting of the spouse, and creating separate infrastructure for women officers in inhospitable terrain. The study found that a woman officer remains absent from duty for family reasons for a period of four years at an average during her career.
These issues cropped up as the Army, unlike the IAF and Navy, operates in inaccessible terrains, officials said.
The South Western Command was asked to keep these
factors in view while framing the policy.
The Services threw open its doors for women officers in 1992-93 and the percentage of women officers in the Army, Navy and Air Force, excluding medical streams, is 3.3 per cent, 3.9 per cent and 10.04 per cent respectively.
In numbers the figure is 1,214 (Army), 302(Navy) and 1,079(IAF).
88 officers in the Army, the Navy 7,744 and IAF force 10,747.
Women officers are inducted in the branches open to them within the overall authorised strength of officers’ cadres of respective service, based on merit on an all- India basis and there is no separate fixed sanctioned strength for women officers.
In the Army, women officers are recruited in the Signals, Engineers, Army Aviation, Army Air Defence, Electronics and Mechanical Engineers, Army Service Corps, Army Ordnance Corps, Intelligence Corps, Army Education Corps and Judge Advocate General branches.
In the Navy, they are inducted into the Judge Advocate General, logistics, Observer, Air Traffic Controller, Naval Constructor and Education branches and in the IAF women officers are recruited in all branches and streams, except the fighter stream of the flying branch.