What commissioning women in artillery units means for Indian Army

The artillery regiments of the Indian army will soon have women officers in yet another milestone aimed at securing gender parity in the armed forces. After a long battle to wrest permanent commissions for themselves, the women in the Indian Army now have the prospect of combat roles. Have they truly broken the glass ceiling then or do they still have a long way to go? Are we as a country ready to see women manning the warfront? To answer these questions and more, we have Rajat pandit, Associate Editor at the Times of India and the in-house expert on the defense sector.Long and arduous battle to breach male bastion of armed forcesIt all began in the 1990s, Rajat recalls, when the Indian Armed forces began inducting women in some wings as short service commission officers. They could serve only for a maximum of 14 years. Since then, women have come a long way after long legal battles and Supreme Court’s intervention. Since the last couple of years, they’re getting permanent commission. In fact, around 250 women officers from combat support arms are being considered for the rank of colonel’s selection grade for the first time. Similarly, while a permanent commission was granted only in legal and education wings earlier, now they’re getting permanent commission in the core of engineers, signals, Army Ordnance Corps, Army Aviation and more. So yes, they’ve come a long way. The latest in the Army is to induct women officers in the regiment of artillery, which is a very big arm of the Army, probably second only to infantry. It has over 280 regiments handling a variety of Howitzers, guns, multiple rocket systems like Smerch and Pinaka. So, while artillery might be designated as a combat support arm in the Army, it is on the frontlines of war fighting. So many regiments have been deployed along the borders with Pakistan and increasingly now with China because of the Ladakh military confrontation. And, for the first time, there are also hundred women Jawans in the corps of military police.What was the first milestone for women in combat roles?The combat exclusion policy for women was shattered when the Air Force inducted three of them as fighter pilots in 2016. Now there are 17 women fighter pilots who are flying Sukhois, even the new Rafales. There are also around 150 women helicopter and transport aircraft pilots in the Army, Navy and Air Force. There are 30 women officers serving on frontline warships. Recently, a woman officer was even posted to Siachen. The first batch of 19 women cadets have joined the National Defense Academy since August last year. That, too, was based on Supreme Court directions.But, as of now, there is no move to induct women officers in the main combat arms in the army --- Infantry, Armoured Corps and Mechanized Infantry. Even the Navy doesn’t allow women on submarines yet. Rajat says women officers are still a minuscule minority in the 14-lakh-strong armed forces. They number just about 3,900 officers among the 65 to 70,000 officer cadre. All these figures are apart from the women doctors and dentists and nurses in the armed forces. How far have we evolved from the ‘men won’t take orders from women’ narrative?The military brass in India for long had opposed inducting women in larger numbers, assigning them combat roles or granting them PC on the grounds of operational, practical, cultural problems. Rajat says that the Air Force used to earlier argue that it takes over Rs 15 crore to train a single fighter pilot. And inducting women in the combat stream would disrupt their tight fighter flying schedules if they got married and had children. But now, women are there. There are 17 fighter pilots and they’re flying high on Rafales and Sukhois. So, slowly but steadily, women are getting more opportunities in the armed forces. They’re breaking those entrenched mindsets that oppose them for a long time, but the barriers are slowly being broken.Will it be easier for women to have combat dreams from now on? Rajat is sure the tides have turned in women’s favour. There are already women fighter pilots. They are also serving on warships, and now they’ll get into artillery regiments. But it has to be on a voluntary basis and they should meet the basic physical fitness criteria. We must also remember that technology is making attributes like physical toughness redundant. A man or a woman can equally well fly fighter planes. It doesn’t require physical strength as such. How have other countries embraced women in military roles over the decades?Rajat speaks about the time he had attended a multinational naval exercise called Milan at Andaman and Nicobar Islands in 2010. Then, he was pleasantly surprised to see women onboard warships of different countries, even countries like Malaysia. At that time, 12 years ago, Indian women were not allowed on warships, could not fly fighter jets, or serve in many arms of the army. The US, Russia, Turkey and Pakistan have had women pilots for long. Countries like Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh in our neighbourhood were also deploying women on warships. In India, it’s only in recent years that we have allowed them in such roles. In the US, women have been serving as officers and sailors even onboard nuclear submarines for a good 10 to 12 years now. They also serve in Infantry and Armoured Corps. Overall, more than 20 countries allow women in combat roles. We have some way to go before achieving that. The induction of women officers in artillery regiments is a small beginning. Are the people of India ready to accept women in combat roles yet? There have always been questions about if during conflicts women are killed or taken prisoners of war, how will the country react? That has been one of the main questions over the years. Earlier, there were practical problems. Indian warships did not have separate facilities for women in terms of cabins or bathrooms. Now, the new warships have such facilities. Overall, Rajat believes women should have the opportunity if they want to, to offer combat rules, but that is something for the government to decide. The society is already accepting women in the armed forces and combat roles is the natural progression. They should get the opportunity to at least opt or volunteer for it. Audio production: Prateek Kapoor