Around 2016, the then Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said that the induction of women in the Armed Forces will be done in a phased manner. Timelines will be decided for the three forces — the Army, IAF and Navy — after taking into account issues of facilities like training and accommodation, Parrikar said
The remarks were significant in many ways, also indicating lack of separate accommodation for women in field areas when posted in combat or warships.
India has come a long way since then.
For the first time in Indian military history this year, 17 women cadets graduated from the National Defence Academy— the premier military training institution considered a complete male bastion—thereby marking a historic step toward gender-inclusive military leadership and opening the path for future women service chiefs. The graduation of the first batch of women cadets from the NDA in May marked the end of seven decades of male exclusivity.
Then on Thursday Sub-Lieutenant Astha Poonia made history, becoming the first woman officer to be streamed into the fighter flying cadre of naval aviation, shattering another new glass ceiling, and paving the way for a new era of women fighter pilots in the Navy.
The Ministry of Defence on Friday announced that Poonia had successfully completed the Basic Hawk Conversion Course at INS Dega in Visakhapatnam, earning the prestigious ‘Wings of Gold’ from Rear Admiral Janak Bevli, Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Air) at the winging ceremony. She will now undergo a year-long advanced training programme to qualify for operating MiG-29K fighter jets, which are flown from the decks of the Navy’s aircraft carriers — INS Vikramaditya and INS Vikrant.
While Indian Navy has already inducted women officers as Pilots and Naval Air Operations Officers in MR aircraft and helicopters, streaming of Poonia into the Fighter Stream highlighted Navy’s commitment towards gender inclusivity in Naval Aviation and promoting Nari Shakti, fostering a culture of equality and opportunity, the MoD said
Senior officers say that doors to women in the combat/fighters (again considered an exclusive domain of men) may have been opened “a bit hesitantly,” but it was “now going great guns, progressing in a systematic, planned way” In fact, India is among the few countries globally to have broken the gender barrier even though they comprise only about 4% of the force as compared to 16% in the US.
Women in forces
Women have been serving in administrative and technical roles in various corps for a long time. Initially they joined military service through the Military Nursing Service established in 1888, and then the Indian Army Medical Corps in 1958 in which women doctors received regular commissions.
Launched in 2022, the Agnipath scheme includes women recruits in Army, Navy, and Air Force—another paradigm shift in recruitment norms.
The IAF has also been inducting women as fighter pilots and allows women in all combat roles. The Navy too has opened all branches, including submarines and aviation, to women officers and many are serving on-board ships and in combat aviation roles. Women officers also played a key role in Operation Sindoor, highlighting their leadership in military strategy.
