IANS
The Indian Army Thursday said it had started the process to grant permanent commission to short service commissioned women officers in 10 streams.
India’s defense ministry has issued the formal government sanction letter for grant of permanent commission to women officers in the Indian Army, paving the way for empowering women officers to shoulder larger roles in the organization.
The order specifies grant of Permanent Commission to Short Service Commissioned (SSC) Women Officers in all 10 streams of the Indian Army — Army Air Defense (AAD), Signals, Engineers, Army Aviation, Electronics and Mechanical Engineers (EME), Army Service Corps (ASC), Army Ordnance Corps (AOC), and Intelligence Corps in addition to the existing streams of Judge and Advocate General (JAG) and Army Educational Corps (AEC).
In anticipation, the army headquarters had set in motion a series of preparatory actions for conduct of the Permanent Commission Selection Board for women officers. The Selection Board will be scheduled as soon as all affected short service commission women officers exercise their option and complete requisite documentation.
“The Indian Army is committed to provide equal opportunities to all personnel including Women Officers to serve the nation,” the force said in a statement.
India’s Supreme Court ordered the Indian Army in February this year to grant permanent commission to women officers within three months. After that, the army started the process to give serving women officers a bigger role.
A bench comprising Justices D Y Chandrachud and Ajay Rastogi had said: “To cast aspersion on their abilities on the ground of gender is an affront not only to their dignity as women but to the dignity of the members of the Indian Army — men and women who serve as equal citizens in a common mission.”
The Indian Army had then stated that all women officers serving in the force from then on would be considered for permanent commission.
