CONCEPT – WOMEN IN INDIAN ARMY

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 CONCEPT – WOMEN IN INDIAN ARMY

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• Women can command: The Supreme Court in Februay 2020 ruled that women could serve as army commanders, dismissing the government's stance that male soldiers were not ready to accept orders from female officers as "disturbing". It Court also ordered the government to extend permanent service - which has only been applicable to men so far - to all women officers, signalling a move towards gender parity in the traditionally male bastion. The SC rebuked the government, describing its views as "disturbing" and urged "the need for change in mindsets to bring about true equality in the army". But it did not rule on deploying women in combat roles, saying a competent authority needed to decide.
• What changes: With this order, women will get the same opportunities and benefits as their male colleagues, including ranks, promotions and pensions and be allowed to serve longer tenures. Earlier, women were inducted through a short-service commission that let them work for up to 14 years and only allowed permanent commission in the army's legal and educational wings. "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," the judges said.

1. So,28 years after they first entered the Army, women officers broke an armour-plated ceiling when the Supreme Court ordered grant of permanent commission (PC) in 10 non-battlefield services in three months and held them to to be eligible to hold command posts.
2. The government had earlier granted PC to newly-recruited women officers in these services, but not those short service commission (SSC) officers already in the force. The SC verdict extends it to all.
3. The decision of the bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and Ajay Rastogi to trash the Army’s “weaker sex” argument ended the 14 year battle that started from Delhi High Court in 2006 (to 2010, and then in SC).
4. It upheld the defence ministry’s February 25, 2019, decision to grant permanent commission to SSC women officers in Signals, Engineers, Army Aviation, Army Air Defence, Electronics and Mechanical Engineers, Army Service Corps, Army Ordinance Corps and Intelligence, Judge Advocate General and Army Education Corps.

• Women in Indian military: India's air force and navy offer a permanent commission to women as well as select combat roles. 

1. Most countries employ women in various roles in their armed forces but only a handful, including Australia, Germany, Israel and the United States, allow them to take on combat roles. 
2. India began recruiting women to non-medical positions in the armed forces in 1992, yet they make up about 4 percent of the army's more than one million personnel.
3. On 19 January 2007, the United Nations first all female peacekeeping force made up of 105 Indian policewomen was deployed to Liberia. 

• Government's logic on women not getting permanent commission: Women officers, unlike men in the same arm or service, are not employed in hazardous duties. As an example, a male officer in the Army Service Corps undergoes infantry attachment in field areas upon commissioning and might be posted later to Rashtriya Rifles/Assam Rifles for counter-insurgency/ counter-terrorist operations. Women officers are not similarly employed because of the “inherent risks”. The government's lawyer submitted to the Court that there are two facets to this story - 

1. The need to protect national security and operational effectiveness;
2. Non-linear battlefield scenarios in future wars.

• Exigencies of Service: Under the head of “Exigencies of Service”, the written note states: “The profession of arms is not only a profession but a ‘way of life’, which often requires sacrifices and commitment beyond the call of duty by the entire family of service personnel, involving separation, frequent transfers affecting the education of children and career prospects of the spouse. As a consequence, it is a greater challenge for WOs (women officers) to meet these hazards of service, owing to their prolonged absence during pregnancy, motherhood and domestic obligations towards their children and families, especially when both husband and wife happen to be service officers.”
• Physical Capabilities: Under the head of “Physical Capabilities”, the note says: “A soldier relies heavily on his physical prowess to engage in combat. The officers are expected to lead their men ‘from the front’ and need to be in prime physical condition to undertake combat tasks. Inherent physiological differences between men and women preclude equal physical performances, resulting in lower physical standards, and hence the physical capacity of WOs remain a challenge for command of units.”
• Composition of Rank and File: Under the head of “Composition of Rank and File”, it states: “Most of the countries whose armies have women as officers also have women in their rank and file, with the exception of India, Pakistan and Turkey. This results in a unique, all-male environment in a unit where presence of WOs requires moderated behaviour in their presence. Posting of WOs in all-male units thus has its own peculiar dynamics.”
• Infrastructure: Under the head of “Infrastructure”, the note says: “Infrastructure in forward/border areas is very basic with minimal facilities for habitat and hygiene. Officers and men have to make do with primitive/ makeshift arrangements. Manning forward posts and small detachments with restricted communication facilities leads to a feeling of isolation. Deployment of WOs in such situations or places in the current circumstances is not advisable.”
• POW: The note portends the dangers of a woman officer being captured by the enemy and becoming a prisoner of war.

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