The Indian Army is breaking barriers and trying to make the force more gender neutral even at higher positions. Five women officers joined the Regiment of Artillery after the successful completion of training at the Officers Training Academy (OTA), Chennai on Saturday, reported ANI. They will be provided with the same opportunities and challenges as their male counterparts and will be commissioned into various types of units.
Along with them, 19 male officers have been inducted into the Regiment.
As per PTI, the five women officers to have joined the Regiment of Artillery are Lt Mehak Saini, Lt Sakshi Dubey, Lt Aditi Yadav and Lt Pious Mudgil.
The duration of the course is less than six months. During training there was no separate syllabus for the women Artillery officers and they underwent the same course as their male counterparts.
They will be given adequate training and exposure to handle Rocket, Medium, Field and Surveillance & Target Acquisition (SATA) & equipment in challenging conditions.
Out of the five women officers, three are posted to units deployed along Northern borders while the other two in "challenging locations" near the frontier with Pakistan, reported PTI.
Another batch of five women officers will join the Artillery when the next batch passes out in September. The commissioning of women officers into the Regiment of Artillery is a testament to the ongoing transformation in the Indian Army, a sources told the news agency.
In January, Chief of Army Staff Gen Manoj Pande announced the decision of commissioning women officers into artillery units. The proposal was later approved by the government.