Indian Army all set to break barriers
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NEW DELHI - The Indian Army is holding consultations for preparing a plan to grant permanent commission to women in its ranks as it becomes the last military arm to give up resistance to women serving until their age of retirement.
A senior Army officer said the government had to submit an affidavit on the policy changes within two weeks to the Supreme Court, and a final policy would be ready in six months. “The combat arms do not look ready for women for now, but time is not far away when even those will open up to women,” he said.
The officer said discussions about combat arms were increasingly about the logistics of accommodating women in the operational areas, and not any more about women’s capability to serve on the frontlines.
The Centre on Monday told the Supreme Court that it was considering granting permanent commission to women officers who are in service now as Short Service Commission (SSC) officers. Those under the SSC get to serve a maximum of 14 years with multiple extensions, and have to leave service without pension in their 30s.
The Air Force and the Navy shed their opposition to granting permanent commission to women in 2010. As of now, 350 women serve both the forces as permanent commissioned officers, besides doctors and nurses who have historically served alongside male counterparts.
The Army mounted a legal challenge in the Supreme Court after the Delhi High Court in 2010 ordered all the three arms of the military to grant permanent commission to women officers. Army sources said the arguments are now boiling down to two key issues: the practical challenges in deploying women in active areas such as Kashmir; and the logistics requirements to accommodate them in areas that have been built exclusively for men.
