DSA March 2014 by Defence and Security Alert

editor-in-chief

DSA is as much yours, as it is ours!

ar is a man’s world. The much repeated cliche has come to develop its own momentum and universal usage. It is now the common perception that wars are created and fought by men. There is a gender gap when it comes to conversations about wars, defence and security. It is commonly accepted that war is a man’s business and everything around it has a gender barrier. In perception terms women are excluded from the world of wars. But this hasn’t always been the case in societies that functioned long before the Victorian era brought its own mores into the world. There have always been examples of women combatants through history. Granted the lead role was reserved for men, but contribution in war by women has always been cited in history. And in many cases a direct contribution too. From providing logistic support to being daredevil combatants women have been known to participate in military campaigns. The last great example being the various Maratha armies that set the country ablaze. From being favoured queens to transforming into able military leaders they set an example that has been difficult to emulate since then. Rani Laxmi Bai of Jhansi of course being the most famous such example. Then for complex sociological reasons women came to be excluded from military ventures, but entered pursuits that had also been out of bounds to them. All of that changed in the brutal Nazi campaigns against Soviet Russia during World War II. In combating Nazi terror in Europe and across the world the role of women in Soviet Russia has been seminal. They were truly trailblazers in the modern world. That success turned the tide against the rampaging Nazis, until then unmatched and unbeatable. The experience of World War II proved to be a game changer for women in militaries across the world. Following the devastation of the second Great War and as societies adapted to the chilling realities of the cold war, defence and security structures around the world came to adjust, both in the terms of gender as well as in responsibilities. Women came to be recruited in greater numbers than ever in the military and security fields. Granted the levels of responsibilities remained restricted, but the entry had been made. And it was only a question of time before commissioned ranks opened up to women. All of that changed once militaries came to professionalise in ever greater numbers. Once conscription had run its course it was a matter of time before women came to be granted greater access in a professional volunteer military service. So in the last few decades women have entered the penultimate of men’s military worlds – diving as submariners, jumping as paratroopers and flying as pilots. Women came to share the cramped underwater world of submarines with their male counterparts. Endless days roaming in the silence of the oceanic subsurface proved that women were equal to the task. Jumping into the same drop zone wearing the same kit also proved that women could perform their paratrooping tasks with equal gusto. And handling the same helicopters and transporters as their male colleagues women proved themselves as capable pilots. It was a matter of time before the ultimate in men's military world came to be challenged too. Women are knocking on that last door now. Combat roles had remained restricted to men even as women advanced well into restricted military realms. There was no question of women being risked in war when it came to submarine activities, or jumping as combat paratroopers, or flying combat missions in air. The dilemma is a moral one and it involves the brutality expected against a prisoner of war. When brutality is expected why increase the risk for women is the query that has no easy answer. Each society has to approach that dilemma from its own perspective and its own restrictions. India has opened its military and security services to women. While there are enlisted women in the various Central Police Organisations there are only commissioned officers in the three armed forces. The closest it has allowed, thus far, are combat support missions by air. But when women are leading the design and fabrication teams for ballistic missiles in the Defence Research and Development Organisation it is a matter of time before they come to command that equipment too.

Manvendra Singh March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

sneak peek

publisher's view

Yatra Naryastu Pujyante, Ramante Tatra Devata!

e usually hear nation states being called “Motherland”. Indian philosophy and Indian mythology have signiﬁed that “Motherhood”, a synonym of “Naari Shakti” or female power instills the feeling of security within us right from birth. History and mythology have bequeathed women with a pre-eminent position in the society and reinforced the indisputable fact that … Gods reside where Woman is worshipped! – Yatra Naryastu Pujyante, Ramante Tatra Devata!

An ISO 9001:2008 Certified Magazine

Volume 5 Issue 6 March 2014 Chairman Shyam Sunder Publisher and CEO Pawan Agrawal Editor-in-chief Manvendra Singh Director Shishir Bhushan Corporate consultant KJ Singh Art consultant Divya Gupta Central Saint Martins College Of Art & Design, University Of Arts, London Corporate communications Mamta Jain Creative Prem Singh Giri Representative (USA) Steve Melito Representative (J and K) Salil Sharma Correspondent (Europe) Dominika Cosic Production Dilshad and Dabeer Webmaster Sundar Rawat

Announces April 2014 Issue on

Attitudes have changed in the past few decades but the basic fact of the power of Womanhood, Naari Shakti, remains the same in every society. Rather it has emerged as a major thrust area of the empowerment of society. India’s commitment towards enforcement and acknowledgement of women’s rights since ancient civilisations has been nurtured and meticulously worked upon during the last few decades. Team DSA is equally proud of this inherent “Woman Power” and on the occasion of International Women’s Day, this edition pays tribute to gutsy women from defence and security arena. Indian history also shows the other side of the coin that women were ironically restricted to the impeccable, yet un-acknowledged management of their homes till Independence. Even though Jhansi ki Rani Lakshmi Bai and Razia Sultana epitomised woman power with their dedication and love for their motherland by effortlessly taking to arms against traitors, India had to wait for several decades to see her women blossom and become empowered. The world has been watching with jaw dropping amazement as the Indian Woman accepts challenges and conquers domains that have been sadly unapproachable before and we bow to their courage to step out from the comforts of their homes and contribute to the nation’s defence and security. It will not be wrong when I say that women power has played an integral role in the supersonic growth and development we see in India today. Their involvement, dedication, result-orientation and an inherent management and administration skill is unparalleled and acts as a catalyst in accomplishing what they embark upon. Their highest level of commitment catapults them steps ahead in comparison to other women in the world.

IT operations Mahendra Singh Dhruv Bisht Ankit Kumar Photographer Subhash Circulation and distribution Anup Kumar E-mail: (first name)@dsalert.org info: info@dsalert.org articles: articles@dsalert.org subscription: subscription@dsalert.org online edition: online@dsalert.org advertisement: advt@dsalert.org Editorial and corporate office 4/19 Asaf Ali Road New Delhi-110002 (India) t: +91-011-23243999, 23287999, 9958382999 e: info@dsalert.org www.dsalert.org Disclaimer

All rights reserved. Reproduction and translation in any language in whole or in part by any means without permission from Defence and Security Alert is prohibited. Opinions expressed are those of the individual writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher and / or editors. All disputes are subject to jurisdiction of Delhi Courts. Defence and Security Alert is printed, published and owned by Pawan Agrawal and printed at Graphic World, 1686, Kucha Dakhini Rai, Darya Ganj, New Delhi-110002 and published at 4/19 Asaf Ali Road, New Delhi (India). Editor: Manvendra Singh

The First and the Only ISO 9001:2008 Certified Defence and Security Magazine in India

It is our privilege and pleasure to introduce some of these eminent “Women in Uniform” who have served in various defence and security forces of India as they fondly reminisce and walk down memory lane to motivate and inspire us. Be it the army, the navy or the air force or the paramilitary forces CRPF, BSF, CISF, SSB ... etc Indian women have dared to accept challenges and proved their mettle with conviction. 8th March is dedicated to women empowerment worldwide and hence, dear readers, this edition salutes Naari Shakti with astonishingly candid memories of Indian women who have undeviatingly paved their own way to the top and left a trail for young girls considering defence and security as a career option. Their remarkable achievements demand greater honour and respect as they have been simultaneous with unquestionable management of their homes and families. Although there are many more hurdles to cross, their tryst with victory has just begun ... This edition also focuses on the role of DRDO in the defence of India with an exclusive interview of the Scientiﬁc Advisor to the Raksha Mantri Dr Avinash Chander, which will shed a new light on the defence preparedness. DEFEXPO is organised every two years in New Delhi to bring all manufacturers and buyers in the defence and security industry on one platform to facilitate the Indian defence procurement. Cmde Ranjit Bhawnani Rai has been kind enough to provide an in-depth analysis on the objectives and results of DEFEXPO 2014. I am sure you will enjoy this DSA special on “Women in Uniform” and will like to preserve this collector’s edition that promises to inspire. Jai Hind!

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Pawan Agrawal

For subscription write to: subscription@dsalert.org online@dsalert.org Or call: +91-11-23243999, 23287999, 9958382999

Contents TM

An ISO 9001:2008 Certified Magazine

A R T I C L E S

Volume 5 Issue 6 March 2014

Lionhearted Indian Women Who Dared To Dream Mamta Jain

Sterling Example Of empowerment Surgeon Rear Adm Nirmala Kannan VSM, NM (Retd)

Stray Thoughts And My Experiences AM Padma Bandopadhyay VSM (Retd)

Un-uniformed But Central To Defence And Security Cecil Victor

I Dare Dr Kiran Bedi IPS

From Officer To Inspector General Tilotama Varma

Open Minded Approach Air Marshal Anil Chopra PVSM, AVSM, VM, VSM (Retd)

Time For Policy Review And Course Correction Major General (Dr) Mrinal Suman AVSM, VSM (Retd)

Leading By Personal Example Lt Col Ankita Srivastava (Retd)

Inadequate Tenure, Wasted Assets Major Rekha Tripathi (Retd)

Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Largest Paramilitary Force Sudhir Kumar

Ambition And Fulfilment Wg Cdr Neelu Khatri (Retd) Life In The Army Lt Col Asha Kale (Retd)

Soaring High Capt Nivedita Bhasin

Case For Women Recruitment In Armed Forces Vinita Agrawal

The High Soul Climbs The High Way! Aruna Bahuguna IPS

Changing Perspectives And Perceptions Lt Gen SN Handa PVSM, AVSM, VSM (Retd)

Women As Border Guards Somesh Goyal IPS

Employability Of Women Officers Indian Navy

Gender Integration And Equal Opportunity Malini Agarwal IPS

Follow DSA on:

@dsalert

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

F E A T U R E S Sneak Peek EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW His Excellency Ioannis E Raptakis The Greek Ambassador

3 6

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW 10 Dr Avinash Chander Scientific Advisor To Raksha Mantri

Nowhere On The Frontlines The True Perspective Lt Gen VK Chaturvedi PVSM, AVSM, SM (Retd)

Homemakers As Defenders Border Security Force

The Indian Perspective Capt Sajita Nair (Retd)

Opportunities Galore Dinavahi Shyamala

Untapped Talent And Potential PM Heblikar

No Emotional Pros And Political Cons Wg Cdr AN Hanfee VrC (Retd)

My Life In The Army: A Nostalgic Journey Col (Dr) Alka Goswami VSM (Retd)

CBRN: Self-reliance In Defence Technologies Dr Rakesh Kumar Sharma

Follow DSA on:

POST SHOW REPORT Defexpo 2014

Get Connected

@dsalert

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW Col Ingrid Gjerde, Commandant Norwegian Army Military Academy

For online edition log on to: www.dsalert.org March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

international relations

INTERVIEW

WITH HIS EXCELLENCY

Ioannis E Raptakis

AMBASSADOR OF GREECE TO INDIA

ndia and Greece have enjoyed friendly and warm relations for more than six decades. Now with India’s economic and geostrategic importance on the ascendance and Greek economic crisis coming to an end a mutually beneﬁcial synergy is developing between both the countries. In an exclusive interview to DSA His Excellency Ioannis E Raptakis covers a wide range of subjects and shares his views and insights.

Defence and Security Alert: India and Greece have enjoyed friendly, warm and multifaceted bilateral relations since the establishment of diplomatic relations between both the countries in 1950. Please enlighten our readers around the world with the contours and important milestones in this cordial journey. Ioannis E Raptakis: Diplomatic relations between Greece and India were established in May 1950. The political climate between the two countries is excellent, with multifaceted, harmonious and warm relations, as we are linked by close ties of friendship and mutual cooperation and represent ancient cultures. The excellent relations are conﬁrmed by the frequent exchanges of high-level visits some of which are considered as high points of our parallel journeys. As examples let me cite those of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1983, President Zail Singh, in 1986, President Shankar Dayal Sharma in 1993 and President Abdul Kalam in 2007 and form the Greek side those of President Konstantinos Karamanlis in 1982 and President Konstantinos Stefanopoulos in 1998. DSA: Greece is strategically located and is a member of European Union and NATO. How do you view the present state of the world especially the transition from a unipolar to a multipolar world order? Ioannis E Raptakis: The world is changing, indeed and hopefully in the right direction. Never there have been so many democracies and so few wars amongst states. No country is dominant anymore on the world stage. The world has become too interdependent to let this happen again and it will not be divided between East and West. Let us hope that the focus of people in the future will be

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

on development and prosperity, not on war. DSA: As a national policy, Greece has been striving to orchestrate a viable and vibrant defence industry since 1970’s. How successful have been these endeavours and which world-class products and technologies have you been able to develop for domestic consumption and export to friendly countries? Ioannis E Raptakis: Greek defence industry produces a big variety of equipment for the needs of the Greek armed forces. Systematic efforts for the growth of defence industry began in the 1970s. The objectives were to meet national military needs and reduce dependence from suppliers from abroad. The effort to export defence material and in some cases know how, has been a fairly success story and is currently under reassessment as some state-owned industries are sold to the private sector, in order to become more competitive and export oriented. DSA: As you know India has emerged as the largest importer of defence products and technologies and offers a burgeoning market to Greek manufacturers. What kind of defence cooperation exists and is possible between both the countries? Ioannis E Raptakis: The Greek Defence Industry includes certain companies that develop state-of-the-art material and equipment which is in great demand by foreign buyers. There are companies of metal products and metallurgy (37 per cent), electric and electronic equipment (25.9 per cent), transports (18.5 per cent), mechanical equipment (9.26 per cent) and plastic and tires (9.26 per cent). In this regard, closer defence cooperation will help both our countries to better incorporate new technologies, manage the cost of rapid technological change and integrate new markets. DSA: Some Greek companies participated in recently held Defexpo 2014. How has been their experience and what kind of response did they get?

The latest issue of DSA engrosses the Ambassador!

international relations

INTERVIEW

His Excellency Ioannis E Raptakis and Mr Pawan Agrawal, Publisher and CEO of Defence and Security Alert (DSA) in a serious discussion

(STANAVFORMED), a submarine, a supplier ship, a minesweeper for MCMFORSOUTH and one Orion P-3 aircraft, for the operations of Active Endeavour. DSA: India and Greece have been working on Strategic Partnership Agreement for quite some time. What is the present status and when are we graduating to the desired Strategic Partnership? Ioannis E Raptakis: Following a series of discussions, the negotiation is in an advanced stage. Few remaining pending issues will be settled soon. The Agreement will be signed during a high level visit, hopefully in the near future. DSA: Bilateral trade and economic cooperation between India and Greece does not match the enormous potential. What more can be done to augment and increase economic cooperation between our friendly countries? Ioannis E Raptakis: The volume of bilateral trade remains beneath the two countries potential and expectations and can be further developed and diversiﬁed. The most dynamic areas are those of shipping, food and beverages and of course tourism. Sectors like constructions and infrastructure, energy and renewable energy, software and telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, shipbuilding and ship repairing also present signiﬁcant opportunities for investment and trade.

Ioannis E Raptakis: “DEFEXPO INDIA 2104” is rightly considered one of Asia’s most important defence shows and it provides an excellent opportunity for the companies to demonstrate their products. Greek companies that participated to the event are looking forward to cooperating with Indian industries. DSA: Joint military exercises signiﬁcantly enhance defence cooperation between friendly countries. What is the status and scope for such Indo-Greek military exercises? Ioannis E Raptakis: Due to the geographic distance, no joint military exercise is currently carried out between the two countries. However in this, our globalised world, I believe we should consider the potential of joint exercises, in a bilateral or multilateral context. DSA: Greece has always supported India’s permanent membership of the UN Security Council. What role do you envisage for the UN in the ﬂuid and ever changing global security environment. Ioannis E Raptakis: We have expressed in numerous occasions our support for India’s bid to become a Permanent Member of the United Nations Security Council and we will continue to support efforts to

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

this direction. Furthermore, Greece is in favour of a comprehensive reform of the UN system, so that the Organisation becomes more efﬁcient, accountable and capable to meet the ever-increasing needs of the international community. Accordingly, we co-sponsored the initiative launched by the G4 for the enlargement of the Security Council, so that it becomes more balanced and reﬂects the realities of today’s world. DSA: Both India and Greece are maritime nations and vulnerable to terrorism and piracy. What joint efforts both the countries are making to counter these global scourges?

DSA: What is your message for the people of India and DSA readers? How do you visualise Indo-Greek bilateral relations developing in the dynamic geopolitical and geostrategic regional and global environment? Ioannis E Raptakis: People in Greece see India as a rising power, as the world’s largest democracy, as an economic giant in the making. The general feeling towards India is one of respect and admiration, respect for your history and culture and admiration for your recent accomplishments. They know that your country is changing rapidly economically and modernising its structures and concepts.

Ioannis E Raptakis: India and Greece have suffered because of terrorism. It can only be mutually beneficial to cooperate through our specialised agencies but also involve the private sector in order to better control financial flows.

Greece is also changing. The economic crisis is coming to an end. Greece has shown impressive results. The budgetary primary deﬁcit became a primary surplus in 2012. In 2013 it is a clear primary surplus and we believe that in 2014 we will see an even better performance. Now we can see beyond the crisis.

Deﬁnitely, we are maritime nations, thus it is important for both India and Greece to support international efforts to ﬁght piracy. I would like to underline that Greek military contribution to the counter terrorism and counter piracy effort includes two frigates, one in the Persian Gulf in the frame of Enterprise Enduring Freedom and another in the Mediterranean Sea, participating to the NATO force

Greece has vast comparative advantages. It has its environment, its geographical position, its culture, history, agricultural production, tourism. It has the abilities of the Greek people and their brilliance. Therefore, there’s great potential for further development of our interactions, trade and investment opportunities, people-to-people contacts, cultural exchanges and increase of tourist ﬂows.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

role of drdo

INTERVIEW by our own industry. The Indian industry has come a long way since the decades of 1960s, 70s and 80s when DRDO had to struggle to find indigenous sources for any components, devices or fabrication equipment, as well as to find production partners capable of transforming even simpler technologies developed by DRDO into manufactured products. The industries during those days, found it difficult to operate in even in ‘build to drawing’ mode. Those who joined hands with DRDO in those days are now able to work in ‘build to design’ and some even ‘build to requirement’ mode. Though a quantum jump in indigenous capabilities, now the time has come when Indian industry has to start investing in defence R&D and pursue in-house design and development of weapon systems, if need be, with the support of DRDO. DRDO has been supporting the private and public sector industries by not only making its technologies available but continued handholding till the production gets stabilised. Defence products worth more than 1,60,000 crore have been either inducted into Services or are in various stages of production. I see a great economic potential for our industries in this crucial sector. My vision for DRDO is to see it as a technology leader and the best defence R&D organisation on the globe not only meeting the requirements of India’s armed forces but also leading the way with futuristic technologies that would define the way future wars would be fought; or better still, avoided. DSA: After assuming the charge as Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri and Director General DRDO, you had stated, “We are looking forward to further growth in indigenous capabilities and achieve a goal of 75 per cent self-reliance. DRDO has tremendous potential and the right critical mass.” Now after being in office for more than six months, what are your views about DRDO playing a pivotal role in the defence preparedness of the country?

Dr Avinash Chander

SCIENTIFIC ADVISOR TO RAKSHA MANTRI

AND DIRECTOR GENERAL DRDO

r Avinash Chander, an eminent scientist of India took over as the eleventh Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Director General DRDO on 31st May 2013. Under his dynamic stewardship, DRDO is making significant strides in enhancing the level of self-reliance in defence sector. Here in an exclusive interview with Defence and Security Alert (DSA) he shares his views and vision for DRDO in the service of the nation. Defence and Security Alert: You are recognised as one of the finest and most distinguished scientists and defence technocrats in India. What is your vision for defence industry in general and DRDO

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

in particular to make India self-sufﬁcient major weapon systems at the earliest?

Scientiﬁc Advisor To Raksha Mantri: Self-reliance especially in the area of weapon systems, military equipment and the defence technologies required to realise such systems is the key element for a country to be a major global force. One cannot go on importing such weapon systems forever and remain dependent on other countries. The past experience has taught that the spares for such imported weapons are either delayed or denied to us or at a crucial juncture when we needed them the most. To be a strong and independent country we need to envisage our requirements, design and develop such systems indigenously and lead them to production

SA to RM: DRDO has been playing a key role in the defence preparedness of the country. It has enabled India with the indigenous multi-level deterrence capability that is expected to ward of any nuclear misadventure against our country. Thus, Prithvi II, Agni 1, Agni 2 and Agni 3 are already with our armed forces. Agni 4 and the underwater launched Bo5 are ready for induction. Together these missiles provide a reach of more than 4,000 km, while Agni 5 Intercontinental Ballistic Missile with range in excess of 5,000 km is expected to join soon after its trials from canister. DRDO has also designed and developed multilayer air defence system against the strategic ballistic missiles. For the tactical battlefield, a very wide range weapon systems platforms and equipment based on technologies developed by DRDO are already strengthening the war fighting capabilities of Indian armed forces. Two regiments of Arjun Mk I have been inducted while Arjun Mk II has completed most of its user trials. Tejas, the 4th plus generation Light Combat Aircraft, India’s first and world’s lightest and smallest flying supersonic combat aircraft has been cleared for induction and is expected to get final operational clearance by the year end. Akash surface to air missile system has been inducted to boost our air defence. We have achieved very high level of self-reliance in the area of radars and electronic warfare system with the

Agni 5 March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

role of drdo

INTERVIEW

development of systems such as Battlefield Surveillance Radar (BFSR), radars such as Bharani, Ashlesha, 3D CAR, Rohini, Revathi and Weapon Locating Radar, to name a few. Our armed forces are using indigenously developed and produced electronic warfare systems like Samyukta and Sangraha, our ships are equipped with indigenously developed sonar systems. More than one million INSAS rifles are in the hands of our Soldiers while DRDO scientists are developing the latest carbines, multi-calibre rifles and corner shot weapons. Broad range of night vision devices have been developed to help the soldiers operate effectively at night. The list is certainly not an exhaustive one. Thus, you can see that the weapon systems designed and developed by DRDO and led to production with the help of Indian industry are playing a very significant role in India’s defence preparedness. DSA: You are acknowledged as the chief architect of Agni series of ballistic missile system. Agni missiles add muscle to India’s military might. Please share with DSA readers the current status of Agni missiles and their induction schedule. SA to RM: As stated earlier, Agni 1, 2 and 3 have been already inducted. With its 3rd successful flight on 20th January 2014, Agni 4 missile has completed its development phase. Agni 5 has had two very successful flights and is ready for its trials from a canister. It will need two or three development trials from the canister, after which the induction process will begin. The Agni series of missiles have seen a great technological transformation from the firing of first Agni missile in 1989. The most important aspect is that all the technologies have been developed indigenously in an era of control regimes and technology denials and were transformed into manufactured products, by and large with the support of private industries.

DSA: You have been a big supporter of involving Indian industry in enhancing self-reliance in defence sector. What initiatives have you taken to augment industry participation in developing critical technologies and products required by our defence and security forces? SA to RM: The technology readiness level of Indian industry till as late as 90s was far behind the requirements. DRDO took initiative to carry along the industry and make it ready to absorb advanced technologies. Many of the advanced products required facilities that were very expensive and beyond the investment capability of many industries, especially MSMEs. Since government rules did not provide any scope of assuring the production orders to the industry, the situation was further complicated and acted as damper for the industries to invest in expensive infrastructure. DRDO found a solution in terms of employing GOCO (Government Owned Company Operated) concept. This is one such example. Another important aspect is the handholding of industry throughout the development and initial production phase till the industry becomes confidant of going ahead with smooth production. The industries that joined DRDO during those difficult days have today matured and many of them have transformed into OEMs for global giants against stiff competition. DSA: What do you think is holding back Indian industry from wholeheartedly committing itself to research and development and manufacturing in the defence sector? SA to RM: In terms of technological competence and investment capabilities, the Indian industry has reached fairly high level of maturity. Research and development, especially in defence sector is an inherently risky process and requires significantly large investments. The basic issue is that for any industry to be an economically

viable entity, it needs to operate with a net profit and thus, need a fair degree of certainty for return on its investments. I am sure the industry will participate with greater commitment and enthusiasm when the numbers to be produced are large enough. One way of ensuring that is to allow and promote export of such products. Speeding up the process of user trials and acceptance will also encourage them to participate. DSA: There is a general perception and concern over inordinate delays in delivery of major weapon systems and fruition of vital and critical projects. What corrective measures do you suggest to streamline operations and dispel this disturbing perception? SA to RM: In a number of cases of development of complex systems such as the light combat aircraft the time durations were not too long as compared to world standards. Thus, the Indian LCA programme sanctioned for engineering development in 1993 has taken 20 years to reach present status, which compares reasonably well with the development of similar aircraft by the countries considered as leaders in aeronautics industry. Yes, in some cases when we were struggling to develop the product for the first time in the country with an eco-system generations behind the required level, the time taken was longer. In such cases, what we have delivered is not just a product but an entire eco-system that included among other things, the design tools, fabrication facilities for not only the main system level but also at subsystem and component level, comprehensive infrastructure for testing and evaluation. Now when we set out to develop higher versions, we are able to do so in a much shorter time. For instance, the maiden flight of Agni 5 could take place within just three years of the sanction of project. That is the case for most other products. The delays, if any are a matter of past.

DSA: Future wars are going to be network centric, robotic with liberal use of WMDs. What products and technologies are you developing for future soldiers and future wars? What time frame do you have in mind to make India ready to face such emerging challenges with confidence? SA to RM: In today’s scenario where a number of countries are, overtly or covertly, possessing strategic weapons capable of mass destruction, any full scale war involving such weapons will ensure mutual annihilation. Thus, the possibility of such war looks remote. The future warfare tactics are likely to be dominated by proxy war and covert operations often involving high end technologies. In any case the future wars are going to be dominated by autonomous unmanned systems. DRDO has been working in this area and has made significant advances. Today we have unmanned systems operating on the land, in the air as well as underwater. UAVs, Rustom 2, Rustom 1, Nishant, Lakshya and a range of mini and micro UAVs, land systems Mantra and Daksh and the autonomous underwater vehicle are the examples of such autonomous products. Network centric technologies, cyber security and advanced sensors are another thrust area in DRDO. We are aware of the challenges of future warfare. We have mastered some of the technologies and are working on many other technologies required to meet such challenges. DSA: You have been projecting the need for India to develop space war capability with both defensive and offensive features. How do you propose to ensure security and well-being of India’s growing space assets? SA to RM: In terms of technologies we are fully capable of securing our space assets. India is a peaceful country and we are firmly committed for peaceful use of space. The capabilities developed by us are for deterrence and defence. DSA: In the prevailing dynamic global, regional and internal security environment, as head of DRDO, what message would you like to give to the people of India, our armed forces and DSA readers around the world. SA to RM: Technology, particularly the military technologies are an ever evolving phenomena. To a scientist the realm of defence technologies is both challenging and exciting. We had a glorious past till the beginning of colonial era. What followed during the later period was suppression and systematic destruction of our capabilities. With the resilience and hard work inherent in Indians, we could bounce back and today we have reached a level where our technologies in many areas are comparable with the rest of the world. DRDO is fully capable of meeting the diverse technology needs of Indian armed forces and transforming such technologies into world-class products taking along with it the Indian industry for their production. The industrial capabilities are fast catching up. With vision and continued dedication the future is bright.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

GUTSY FIGHTERS

boeing.co.in

These women have boldly redeﬁned their boundaries with a rare and jaw dropping display of wit, indestructible conviction and sensitive acumen, refusing to be trapped within the generalised parameters of a daughter, sister, wife and mother. They have found the courage of their doctrine and have dared to dream and accomplish. Inspiration from mythological icons has motivated women to embody the strength and valour of Durga, defence and ferocity of Kali, prosperity and abundance of Lakshmi, knowledge and wisdom of Saraswati and commitment and compassion of Parvati to challenge the strictest norms of society drafted

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

MAMTA JAIN

The writer is an Engineering graduate from Allahabad University and takes pride in being an intellectual and dynamic professional with an enriching experience in Sales and Service Operations. An effective communicator with excellent relationship management skills and leadership capabilities, her objective is to contribute to India's worldwide acceptance as the new Global Power. She heads Corporate Communications at Defence and Security Alert (DSA).

by a staunchly patriarchal pecking order.

A mere mention of powerful women of the political world zooms down to our former Prime Minister, Mrs Indira Gandhi, very aptly crowned as "Woman of the Millennium" in a poll organised by the BBC in 1999, was instrumental in establishing that women had an equal right to dream and conquer. The first Indian woman in space, Kalpana Chawla justified her name by imagining the impossible and transforming it into reality. Living legend, Dr Kiran Bedi, the first and highest ranking woman IPS officer and recipient of the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award; Aruna Bahuguna, first woman to head The National Police Academy (NPA); Captain Nivedita Bhasin of Indian Airlines became the youngest woman pilot in world civil aviation history to command a commercial jet aircraft (Boeing) on 1 January 1990 at the age of 26 and India's first woman check-pilot on Airbus A300 aircraft; Lt Gen Punita Arora, the first woman in India to don the second highest rank ie Lieutenant General of Indian Army; Air Marshal Padmavathy Bandopadhyay, the first woman Air Marshal of the Indian Air Force; Surgeon Rear-Admiral Nirmala Kannan of the Indian Navy, a recipient of the Vishisht Seva Medal (VSM) and … the list is endless. These Indian women have victoriously dared to accept challenges and their exemplary performances have paved and illuminated a trail for young girls with a passion to serve their motherland.

280mm Live

od made Man! And then He made … Woman! As they say, you always need a rough draft before the final masterpiece. Indian women have personified the stability of ‘Earth’, passion of ‘Fire’, serenity of ‘Water’, free spirit of ‘Air’ and infinite magnitude of ‘Space’ with panache. In the land of gutsy queens Razia Sultana, Ahilyabai Holkar, Jijabai and Rani of Jhansi, women no longer have to prove that they can protect international borders and contribute to national security with the same zealousness and conviction as they have been running our homes. Celebrating International Women’s day on March 8 to commemorate their achievements and acknowledge their status in society, we share the Capabilities, Camaraderie and Challenges of some of these women from Defence and Security who have broken all physical, psychological and social barriers to reach where they are and serve their motherland.

ONE PARTNERSHIP. ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES.

308mm Bleed

LIONHEARTED INDIAN WOMEN WHO DARED TO DREAM

298mm Trim

women in uniform

Boeing is proud of its longstanding partnership with India. A partnership India can depend upon to meet its developing requirements, from surveillance, strike and mobility platforms to C4ISR, unmanned systems and support services. The most advanced systems and technologies providing the greatest value for India. That’s a partnership of endless possibilities.

women in uniform

GENESIS AND EVOLUTION

EXAMPLE OF An established role for women in the armed forces in any country across the world perhaps has it’s genesis in the outstanding role that Florence Nightingale and her committed group of brave women played during the Crimean War in late 19th century. Therefore it is not surprising that in India too, it was the Military Nursing Service, an all-woman cadre, that was the first to find it’s presence in the armed forces. This was followed by the intake of lady doctors into the Army Medical Corps in 1943 and for the next almost 50 years, these two cadres were the only ones with women in them. This was perhaps primarily because the Constitution of India clearly indicated that women could be part of the armed forces only as Doctors or Nurses.

SURGEON REAR ADM NIRMALA KANNAN VSM, NM (RETD)

The writer served the Indian Navy for 36 years prior to her retirement in May 2013. A Gynaecologist by qualiﬁcation and a Hospital administrator by experience, she has held appointments in training establishments, Service Headquarters and has also Commanded the Indian Naval Hospitals at Visakhapatnam and Mumbai. She is an Alumnus of the Defence Services Staff College as well as the National Defence College. She is also a recipient of two Presidential Awards viz, the Vishist Seva Medal in 1993 and the Nao Sena Medal in 2012. Her husband Vice Admiral B Kannan PVSM, AVSM, VSM, retired as the Chief Of Materiel of the Indian Navy in October 2012.

n fact at the time when the Constitution was to get government approval for inducting women into formulated, Article 14 (equality of women), non-combat branches of the armed forces. The Indian Article 15 (discrimination against women) and Navy was the first of the three Services to have women Article 16 (equal opportunity for employment) were trainees in July 1992 at it’s academy, which was then incorporated for empowering women. However located at Goa. Since then there has been a steady intake it was found necessary to incorporate additional of women officers each year and today there are over provisions vide Articles 16 (3) and 250 women officers (3 per cent of 33 to exclude women from the the strength of officers) in addition In fact, in 2012, when the first provisions of Fundamental Rights to lady medical officers in naval batch of women officers met with regard to the armed forces. service. Similarly the army and for a 20th year reunion, all the air force also progressed since those who attended recalled Induction Of Women 1993 the induction programme of A few decades later in late 80s, with fond nostalgia that the women and today they have nearly when the 6th Five Year plan was Service had moulded them 1,000 women officers in the army and formulated, the government launched into confident and capable 750 women officers in the air force. fresh schemes at the national level individuals, who could Training to empower women further. Soon easily take up challenges A lot of emphasis was laid on after in early 90s, keen interest was in the corporate world ensuring that the first batch of taken by the Service Headquarters,

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

GENESIS AND EVOLUTION

With progressively increasing emphasis on the empowerment of women by the government of India and also additional efforts by authorities to ensure their safety and security, women have no reason to feel that that they cannot achieve what they set out to do. However, whilst quite a few have also expressed a desire to take the challenges of combat roles, like in many Western countries, this decision may require more deliberation in light of the fact that there are no women in the lower ranks women officers performed well at the Naval Academy, both physically and mentally and there was no compromise whatsoever on standards of fitness or discipline. Gender sensitisation of the men and the staff at the academy was conducted on priority and it is creditable that the young women not only did exceedingly well in all fields of initial training but also conducted themselves with dignity and level-headedness to emerge as confident officers eager to venture into a work environment, which so far had been totally male-oriented, as also take on the various challenges ahead of them.

Service Conditions

Since their employment terms were only for Short Service extendable to 14 years, all of those who joined in 1992 are no longer presently in the naval uniform. However, quite a few of them still retain their ties with the Service by virtue of having their lifetime partners in the navy. In fact, in 2012, when the first batch of women officers met for a 20th year reunion, all those who attended recalled with fond nostalgia that the Service had moulded them into confident and capable individuals, who could easily take up challenges in the corporate world. Some also voiced a desire to have made the navy a permanent career option, but were not able to fulfil that dream owing to the then existing laws. However they did commence a legal process for demanding their rightful place in defence services as Permanent Commissioned officers. Their persistent efforts paid off and eventually

the government granted Permanent Commission to women ofﬁcers in limited cadres viz the Education and Legal Branches in the three Services with effect from 2008 as also to the Accounts Branch of the IAF and Naval Constructor Branch of the navy.

Work Environment

Women officers have been generally found to be conscientious, focused, capable of hard work and dedicated. Quite contrary to what most men would prefer to think, women possess innate intelligence, willpower, quickness of judgement, decision-making; they have the ability to communicate, their persuasive skills are good and they have the ability to win the trust of their colleagues as well as their subordinates, which are the hallmarks of good leaders. While most women in uniform would honestly state that their time in the armed forces has been a wonderful experience, the path to their success has not been absolutely problem free. Reasons for this include the patriarchal mindset of men especially those from rural areas of our country, which precludes an open acceptance of women in the armed forces. However this factor is progressively diminishing following more and more representation of women at the panchayat levels. Apart from this, women also feel that they have to prove themselves at every stage to show that they are competent despite being equally qualified as compared to their male counterparts. They feel their work is looked at more carefully, minor faults are pointed out, they are not included in decision-making and that they have to work twice as hard to prove that they are good. Women in the armed forces also at times have had doubts about role definition and about the way they have to conduct themselves. They are not too sure whether they ought to be completely “lady-like”, which is often construed as a sign of weakness or that if they behaved in a casual manner they would lose the respect of their colleagues. Most of the above mentioned hurdles, are common to jobs outside the armed forces too, but with more women joining the Services, the scenario is slowly changing and men have started accepting them as equals. In fact it has been seen that the male and female officers who undergo training together develop a good camaraderie, which leads to effective team building within the organisation.

The writer with Vice Admiral KN Sushil at INHS Sanjivani, the Naval Hospital at Kochi

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

to the police forces) and each service has its peculiar limitation in its deployment practise and infrastructural facility to include women in their combat team. Presently both army and air force have enhanced significantly the role of women officers by posting them to non-family stations in forward areas, while the navy continues in maintaining their postings to only ashore billets, which are invariably family stations as well. As regards to their career progression in the Service, the Permanent Commissioned officers stand a chance of rising in the hierarchy, but this is subject to merit and consistent performance. For this the example of the Armed Forces Medical Services would be appropriate.

Armed Forces Medical Services The women in the Armed Forces Medical Services on the other hand have had the advantage of having been in uniform for a much longer period than their counterparts in other branches. Today we have nearly 800 women Medical Officers, about 100 Dental Officers and about 3,000 members of the Military Nursing Service comprising a significant part of AFMS and many of them have committed to make the armed forces as a career of a lifetime by opting for Permanent Commission.

In the Army Medical Corps women officers have experienced a non-preferential approach for its officers of both genders. This perhaps has naturally emerged due to the intrinsic fact that the profession of medicine itself has no gender discriminatory boundaries, resulting in mentally stronger women and also broadminded men, who learn to take women in their stride. Further, bonhomie and the camaraderie that is built-up during the various training courses especially the Basic Course is perhaps the cornerstone of the teamwork they achieve in their subsequent years and it also instils a competitive spirit in them. The opportunities available thereafter for training, postgraduation and career development are almost equal for them, except that only men are posted in certain areas like forward posts of Siachen or onboard warships. Women are given ample opportunities to develop their managerial and leadership skills and overall personality development. In all these duties there are no different standards for the performance by a Woman Officer and a job well done is always duly appreciated. The avenues for postgraduation in various specialisations are based on a common examination and selection is purely on merit. These days it is interesting to see young lady doctors choose subjects, which are not Gynaecology or Paediatrics and instead opt for Surgery, well knowing that in the years to come their

The armed forces is an ideal career for young women who harbour dreams of serving the Nation, crave for a challenging profession which at the same time offers innumerable perks besides social security and a comfortable pay package work could be in counter-insurgency dominated areas or even in a battlefield in future. Apart from professional courses, women have also been encouraged to qualify for the Defence Services Staff College at mid-career level as well as for the prestigious National Defence College at a senior level, so as to give them a broader exposure for future appointments. Women officers have never been discriminated against for promotional avenues and it has always been merit that counted, resulting in a few of them rising to 2 star and 3 star Generals. Today there are also quite a few women medical officers in senior administrative posts, a reflection of the faith that has been reposed in their managerial capabilities and also the fact that they are acceptable to the men who form part of their team. When it comes to the social and cultural context, women in the medical services are firstly “officers” and then “ladies”, but with the increase in maternity leave and facilities of crèches in most hospitals, lady doctors and also Nursing Officers are nowadays able to balance motherhood and the demands of profession quite well. The issue of a formal gender sensitisation for male members of AFMS has remained practically unheard of and this is probably due to the intrinsic nature of medical profession and also because women officers have been now around for over 70 years. Women officers who have commanded units in the medical services have all expressed complete satisfaction with the behaviour of the men and have always got the best out of them. This of course also has got a lot to do with the training the men receive and the fine value system that is taught to them. On a similar note, it is extremely rare to have heard a woman officer from the medical services voicing fears of sexual harassment. The Armed Forces Medical Services have therefore been a fine example of gender equality and women empowerment, which serve as sterling examples for the other branches of the armed forces to emulate.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is felt that the armed forces is an ideal career for young women who harbour dreams of serving the Nation, crave for a challenging profession which at the same time offers innumerable perks besides social security and a comfortable pay package.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

DREAM COME TRUE

STRAY THOUGHTS AND MY EXPERIENCES

en and women were equal partners. With the passage of time, the Concept changed to ‘man for ﬁeld and woman for hearth’. Women became the boss of home and men the breadwinners. Gradually, the stellar role of women got eroded. Still, some excelled like Rani Lakshmi Bai. The industrial revolution and the technological developments which took place in the last three centuries changed the scenario. Fast changing international and national events had their impacts. The emerging events provided almost equal opportunities to women to get out of their safe cocoon, to build their career and take up challenging and leadership roles, in all spheres of activities. Smt Indira Gandhi our late Prime Minister and Kalpana Chawla are just two examples.

My choice of air force may sound funny. I found the AF Uniform very impressive, aircraft flying adventurous and aerobatic manoeuvres breathtaking. Speed thrills, especially to a teenager. I opted for air force with the dream of becoming a pilot. I was the first Aviation Medical Specialist in South East Asia. I flew in most of the fighter aircraft like Hunters, MiGs of that time where I was posted and this experience helped in understanding and mitigating many of the aeromedical issues. Air force also presented another beautiful angle and most memorable to my life, I met my life partner at Bangalore, Prof Satinath Bandopadhyay VSM PhD from IIT, Delhi.

Memories Of Air Force

During 1971 War, me and my husband were posted at the western theatre. This experience taught me a lot to dare and do, camaraderie, human values and courage. We operated from bunkers at one point as per our jobs like medical wing, Base Ops or ATC etc. Our responsibility was to take care of all armed forces casualties from all over the western front as we were the ﬁrst hospital in the chain of evacuation. Wounded soldiers with severe war injuries mostly orthopaedic cases were brought in. A surgical team arrived and took charge of the war casualties. We young rookies helped the surgical team.

Women’s image and roles are changing in society dramatically. Today, the young girls have clear views regarding their future and perform exceedingly well. To be successful, they may have to work harder and more sincerely, than hitherto, in their chosen ﬁelds in selected directions, competing with their menfolk. In today’s fast changing world, they cannot afford to wallow in self-pity

A few of us may have to shoulder the burden of social responsibilities of our husbands. Yes, we grit our teeth and do it, but never without huge doses of accompanying guilt, say for not looking after children. And yet, despite everything, we do have women in

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

The first batch of women medical cadets passed out of the prestigious Armed Forces Medical College, commissioned in Army Medical Corps and seconded to navy and air force in January 1967. They were the first Women Army Officers to have been granted Permanent Commission directly. Prior to this, there were few Women Medical Officers but they were all commissioned as SSC officers and very few amongst them were granted PC. Women pilots ere commissioned in the IAF since 1995, except in fighter stream. Women officers in the navy since 1991, in the education, legal, logistics branches and as air traffic controllers in the technical and non-technical streams in the army since 1992 only. It was a red letter day for women SSC officers to be made eligible for PC.

Air Force, My Dream

“Women have a long way to go,” like Madam Curie down to us, many women achieve success with the help and understanding of their husbands, brothers and fathers.

Yet, we may have many working women whose chief imperative is to complete their allotted tasks and rush home as soon as possible where children and homework and dinner await. Many of us may not enjoy or afford the luxury of drinks after work or cosy little ofﬁce offsites.

the role of ‘care and cure’ givers.

very powerful positions in our country. Our oldest political party is headed by a woman. Here’s a famous saying: Women represent roughly half the world’s population, perform two-thirds of all work, receive one-tenth of world income and own less than 1 per cent of world property.

Women Ofﬁcers In Indian Armed Forces

Women ofﬁcers have been in the army in the Medical and Nursing Corps for nearly two centuries in

The civil population around the area especially women contributed to the war efforts more than known to outside world. During daytime they made delicious dishes and lovely sweets and gave it to us. They even knitted beautiful sweaters for us. At night, they used to keep strict vigil in the adjoining wheat ﬁelds, captured a number of paratroopers who swooped down on our territory with their buffalo chains, gave them a nice welcome thrashing and handed over to our security personnel. I still admire their courage, valour and patriotism. Real kudos to these unsung heroines. Following this Indo-Pak War, myself and my husband were awarded Vishishta Seva Medal (Presidential Award) together at the same Investiture ceremony, which is still a record in the armed forces of the world.

I was involved in the Kargil Ops as a senior member in planning, stafﬁng, procuring, organising and executing the various requirements. During my service, I had a lot of opportunities to take up adventure along with my routine work. I had travelled exclusively in the Western and Eastern sectors, conducted research in extreme cold and high altitude conditions and in the icy Arctic during winter months. The aim of this study was to ﬁnd out whether the tropical Indian soldier will be able to acclimatise to this extreme cold and perform duties at his / her best. If yes, how long it takes and how long it will last once he / she leaves the Arctic. It was terribly cold normal temp around −35°C and further reduced by chilly winds reaching to −45°C at times. We had 10 Indian soldiers drawn from all parts of India as subjects and to compare we also had 30 Russian soldiers. The sky from Arctic used to feel so low as if you can pluck the stars and the Moon. I also had the good fortune of witnessing the Aurora phenomenon while I was coming back after attending to patients in a nearby hospital. As AOC of AFCME I was responsible for the medical licensing and of the pilots for the entire armed forces, paramilitary and civil airlines.

AIR MARSHAL PADMA BANDOPADHYAY VSM (RETD)

The writer is the first woman Air Marshal of Indian Air Force. She was the Director General Medical Services (Air) at the Air Headquarters. Padmavathy Bandopadhyay joined the IAF in 1968. She had the distinction of being the first woman officer to become an aviation medicine specialist. She was awarded the Visisht Seva Medal for her meritorious service during the 1971 Indo-Pak conflict. She is the first woman Fellow of the Aerospace Medical Society of India and the first Indian woman to have conducted scientific research at the North Pole. She is also the first woman officer to have completed the Defence Service Staff College course in 1978 and to command the IAF's Central Medical Establishment (CME).

As Additional DGAFMS I was entrusted with the responsibility of career planning and conducting promotion boards for the entire Armed Forces Medical Services, Administrative requirements of the armed forces artiﬁcial limb centres spread across the country.

At the helm of affairs as the first lady Director General Medical Services of the Indian Air Force since 2004, I undertook the overall administration and Human Resource Development of the Indian Air Force Medical Services. To conclude, the humble beginning of few women officers as PC officers in 1967 to many women officers in the forces have borne fruitful results. IAF is the first service to have a women officer as Director General Medical Services as Air Marshal. IAF is the first service to implement the Court order to grant PC to SSC women Officers. I salute IAF, the youngest of all the three Services on this great day and wish and pray that IAF scales higher peaks than ever and touch the sky with glory. Jai Hind!

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

AGNIPUTRI

Agni-1

Agni-3

Agni-4

But if it prevents a war of any kind – overt, covert, proxy or sub-conventional – that will be a battle won. It would mean that deterrence is working and India’s inimical neighbours are wary of India’s nuclear capabilities. Nonetheless, warfare is not such a cut and dried matter and because both Pakistan and China have been using unconventional means of attacking India through jihadi terrorist attacks along the Line of Control and the deeper hinterland and instigating insurgencies in the north-east, respectively and collusively. The possibility of an outbreak of a limited conventional war at any time is always there as the Kargil incursion constantly reminds us. To be able to deal more effectively with the extant situation India has to keep its guard up.

Deterrence And Counter-insurgency

UN-UNIFORMED BUT

CENTRAL TO DEFENCE AND SECURITY Clad in ‘civvies’ and untutored in regimental style of functioning Tessy Thomas has made it possible for the uniformed personnel of the armed forces to play out their role as the conventional echelons in the deterrence paradigm.

he debate on whether women should be allowed into the combat zone obscures the presence and contribution of women in the overall context of defence and security of the nation. There can be no gainsaying the contribution the minimum nuclear deterrent has made to national security. It needs to be remembered that the Indian nuclear posture has forced inimical neighbours to resort to war by proxy and the employment of jihadi terrorists to try and achieve their nefarious objectives. Given that this new war is “manpower intensive” the Defence and Security Alert magazine has taken upon itself the task of ﬁnding ways and means of utilising to the full the intrinsic capabilities of the empowered woman. Her role within the armed forces is being examined in this issue and hopefully ideas will come forth for the optimum utilisation of this vast human resource reservoir. But the nation also needs to be reminded of the multifarious ways that women contribute to national security by their activities “behind the lines”.

Hand That Rocks Missile Cradle

This is a recounting of the Teresa “Tessy” Thomas

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

saga which is completely immersed in the incremental growth and improvement of the capabilities of India’s Agni series of ballistic missiles. Her proﬁle became visible when she was appointed associate project director of the 3,000 km range Agni-3 missile project which, as the number suggests is the third generation nuclear capable missile in the Indian arsenal. Her promotion to the post was the highlight of a career that has incorporated association with the development of the Agni series from the design stage to development and deployment. Clad in ‘civvies’ and untutored in regimental style of functioning Tessy Thomas has made it possible for the uniformed personnel of the armed forces to play out their role as the conventional echelons in the deterrence paradigm. Her’s is in no way a frontline military job but what she helps produce is the delivery system of the ultimate weapon of mass destruction. It is one of the three important “legs” on which the philosophy and technology of “deterrence” stands, the others being the nuclear capable aircraft and the nuclear powered submarine. Possibly it will never be ﬁred in anger.

The realisation that what it confronts is a foreign inspired insurgency that can only be dealt with through a more widespread use of human resources has been belated but over the past ﬁve years policies for enhancing the numbers of both military personnel and paramilitary and Central Armed Police Forces has necessitated more recruitment. It thus makes eminent sense that the numbers of women in uniform should increase signiﬁcantly. As it stands, the resort to womenpower is the outcome of a legal imperative to make use of women to deal with women in riotous or disaster management situations more so in a counter-insurgency and a low intensity warfare framework where propaganda about atrocities by security forces can very effectively stoke insurgencies. The soothing touch of a woman’s hand even while serving the legal necessities in cordon-and-search operations also takes care of the imperative of having an armed entity to deal with the terrorists if the need arises.

The realisation that what it confronts is a foreign inspired insurgency that can only be dealt with through a more widespread use of human resources has been belated but over the past five years policies for enhancing the numbers of both military personnel and paramilitary and Central Armed Police Forces has necessitated more recruitment Quietly, India has arrived at a juncture where there are signiﬁcantly larger numbers of women in crucial jobs in the defence and security sector be it in uniform in the armed forces, paramilitary and Central Armed Police Forces or in civvies like the scientist Tessy Thomas in the Defence Research and Development Organisation. India began the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme encompassing a wide range of missiles for surface-to-surface, surface-to-air and air-to-surface missiles in the early 1980s. Tessy Thomas joined the DRDO as a scientist after completing her MTech in guided missiles from the Institute of Armament Technology, Pune, in 1988. With the Equatorial Rocket Launch Station in Thumba in southern Kerala there was plenty of inspiration at hand. By the time she joined the DRDO the missile projects were well on their way and Tessy Thomas was to put her knowledge to practical use. It was just about the time when the ﬁrst of the quartet of missiles,

the Prithvi was test launched. The other missiles in the works were the Agni, the Trishul short range SAM, the Akash the medium range SAM and the Nag anti-tank fire and forget missile. Agni-1 was first test fired in 1989. This means that Tessy Thomas walked into the DRDO when the Agni was being integrated into a composite platform of launch and guidance systems.

Incremental Improvement

CECIL VICTOR

The writer has covered all wars with Pakistan as War Correspondent and reported from the conﬂict zones in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia in South East Asia as well as from Afghanistan. He is author of India: The Security Dilemma.

The Agni-1 is a single stage, liquid fuel, 15 meters tall and one meter in diameter missile with a range of between 700–1,250 km depending on the kind of warhead ﬁtted in its nosecone. If the nuclear warhead had a mass capable of a 15 kiloton yield it can traverse the longer distance. If the weapon has yield of 250 kilotons it would reach the shorter distance. The kinds of warheads it can carry are a unitary (not prefragmented) high explosive, a penetration warhead, an incendiary warhead, submunitions like anti-tank and anti-personnel mines and what are known as fuel-air explosives – weapons more powerful than conventional explosives but just below the nuclear yield threshold. The Agni-1 is fully operational and has been delivered to the Strategic Forces Command which will ﬁre it when required against pre-selected targets.

Tessy Thomas would have been involved in setting the parameters for the next generation of the Agni class of missiles. Taller at 21 meters compared to Agni-1, the Agni-2 also has a one-meter diameter. As with all Indian missiles it is launched from a transporter, erector, launcher (TEL). It is filled with liquid fuel that enables it to cover a range between 2,000–3,500 km on the basis of a “two-and-half-stage” configuration bolstered by additional fuel. Every change in specifications has to be calculated to perfection using new highspeed computers like Anuraag that, like India’s missile project, was subject to strict technology controls and embargos. Among items that had been withheld by the international community under restrictive regimes like the Missile Technology Control Regime was the ring laser gyroscope which maintains the equilibrium of the flying body and contributes to the accuracy of the pre-calculated flight path. The gyros were eventually made in India which, in many ways, was a blessing in disguise. Thanks to people like Tessy Thomas and the team of men and women scientists India achieved self-sufficiency in missile capabilities even as other prestigious military projects floundered at the self-reliance stage of dependence on foreign sources that was supposed to help them leapfrog technology acquired through the licensed-production route. Tessy Thomas became associate project director of the 3,000 km range Agni-3 missile project. An analysis of the creation of this missile will underscore the extremely high technical skills of the team of which she was a leading member. For one, the girth of the missile was doubled to

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

AGNIPUTRI

Quietly, India has arrived at a juncture where there are significantly larger numbers of women in crucial jobs in the defence and security sector be it in uniform in the Armed Forces, paramilitary and Central Armed Police Forces or in civvies like the scientist Tessy Thomas in the Defence Research and Development Organisation two meters. This was a clear indicator that the missile was being configured not just for range but also for the ability of being able to carry a payload that either had a unitary mass or it would be able to carry several separate packages that could be a combination of warheads and decoys to deflect anti-missile batteries. The propellent was changed from liquid to solid and the ballistics calculated for an intermediate range between 3,500 km to 5,000 km. The total all-up weight of the first version of the Agni-3 was a hefty 48,000 kg. It was decided to drastically reduce the weight and the Advanced Systems Laboratory in Hyderabad where Tessy Thomas works set about making a composite rocket motor to fit the oversized body. The body itself was redesigned using composite materials and maraging steel and the weight was reduced by 22,000 kg for the second version of the Agni-3 even while retaining a girth of two meters.

Having achieved such drastic parameters Tessy Thomas was appointed Project Director of the next-generation 3,000 to 4,000 kilometer Agni-4. For those who have noticed that there is a disconnect between the ranges of Agni-2 (2,000 km to 3,000 km and Agni-3 (3,500 km and 5,000 km) will need to understand that the government of India had become convinced that the emerging belligerence of China over the past ﬁve years points to a drastic change in the geopolitical environment. The possibility of a two-front war, of China and Pakistan acting in collusion attacking India began to make the rounds. It may be recalled that the Minister of Defence had at one point asked the DRDO to accelerate its missile development programme to bring China within the ambit of the credible minimum nuclear deterrent. Looking at the map of the world, you would notice that Beijing lies about 5,000 km from points in Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. This explains why the DRDO decided to create a wide-bodied missile like the Agni-3 capable of reaching 5,000 km and why it made sure that the thrust-to-weight ratio is manageable by strenuous exercises in weight control (the reduction by 22,000 kg). Having successfully brought Beijing within reach of Indian nuclear weapons the DRDO decided to close the gap between 3,000 km and 4,000 km by creating the Agni-4 of which Tessy Thomas is Project Director. This missile will bring many of China’s military districts (Chengdu, Tibet and Xianjiang being the closest) within reach.

Whither Tessy Thomas?

Precient Design

The Agni-3 has been designed for future improvement. One would be the inclusion of multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRV) by which one missile can attack several widely-dispersed targets at the same time. The accuracy of the missile which is stated to be a capacity to hit within a 40 meter circular error probability (CEP) – which would be about the width of a three-lane carriageway – sufﬁcient to destroy the intended target with both conventional and nuclear explosives. The other of the Agni-3s built-in future capabilities is that it will be able to be launched from a submerged platform. India’s nuclear submarine Arihant has 2.1 meter diameter silos from where the Agni-3 can be launched with what is known as a sabot or sleeve of composite material that will be discarded once the missile emerges out of the water and becomes airborne.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Born in April, 1963 Tessy Thomas still has seven years of service (barring extension). The first of her responsibilities is to complete the Agni-4 project and test and handover the missile to the Strategic Forces Command. Simultaneous work is underway on the over 5,500 km inter-continental range Agni-5 and the 8,000 to 10,000 km Agni-6. The Agni-5 will retain the wide-bodied configuration of the Agni-3 which means that MIRV-ing is intended to bring the whole of China within Indian reach. That Agni-6 reverts to the one-meter diameter could mean a unitary warhead, either conventional or nuclear, capable of delivery at that range. Agni-6 will have a 1.1 meter diameter. It makes no sense in having a ballistic missile of longer reach than 10,000 km. Could it be that, like the Prithvi missile which is essentially a ground-to-ground missile but converted to a surface-to-air role in the Prithvi Advanced Air Defence (PAAD) Indian anti-ballistic missile (ABM) programme the Agni-6 too will shift from the horizontal to the vertical mode of launch to reach enemy spy-in-the-sky satellites in an anti-satellite role? It could be said that for Tessy Thomas and women not in uniform the sky is the limit in the field of national defence. Jai Ho!

NEVER SAY DIE

I DARE

DR KIRAN BEDI IPS

Dr Kiran Bedi with Mrs Mamta Jain, Head Corp Comm, DSA

epublic Day celebrations of the year 1975 were no different in reference to its splendour, pride and glory. What did make it different was that the marchpast by the contingent of Delhi Police, which later won the prize for best performance, was being led by a woman, Kiran Bedi.

So impressive was this young new entrant’s performance that the prime minister of India, Mrs Indira Gandhi, who was witnessing the parade, virtually jumped out of her seat with a sense of personal pride and joy. She pointed out to her honoured chief guest, Kenneth Kaunda, the president of Zambia, the young woman leading an all-male contingent, striding ahead with a naked sword in her hands and giving a sharp and perfect salute to the National Flag. Fourteen years later, she became the only police officer in the world to receive a peace award – the Magsaysay – the most prestigious of its kind in Asia, at Manila in the Philippines. It is also termed as the Nobel Prize of Asia. The bestowing of such an award represented a rare combination of extremes. And yet, on closer scrutiny, one realizes that all that she was doing was what she perceived as her duty, which throughout her career she executed to the best of her abilities. In her own words, Dr Bedi tells us what have been her guiding principles in life, the fundamentals that chiselled her persona and the qualities of head and heart that made her what she became – a Legend in her lifetime. “To me what is important in life is not being just a police officer but the fact that I am in a position where I can sufficiently provide for myself my mental and physical food. It is this position that enables me to evaluate issues and decide for myself and subsequently enjoy or suffer the consequences without apportioning blame. I have sought for and got the position where I can now give and share always and do not have to ask, seek or wait to get. It is this basic drive to achieve that I would call the foundation of my being. In my case, I have pondered over this quite often and tried to discover the conscious and unconscious manner that it was nurtured in me.

My firm personal convictions that I had grown up with always reinforced my sense of independence and my determination to achieve my objectives as a woman, despite the male-dominated history of my family and of the Indian society. An undaunted belief in “Never Say Die” motivated me with an overpowering urge to shoulder responsibility, make realistic commitments and fulfil them within a given time frame. It also provided me with enough guts to fight my way out of troublesome and tricky situations without flinching.

The writer is the first woman to join the officer ranks of Indian Police Service. She holds a Law Degree, Masters and a PhD. Worked with United Nations, Delhi Police, Mizoram, Goa and Chandigarh police forces. Been a National and Asian Tennis Champion. Is a Nehru Fellow, an author of several books and anchors TV and Radio shows. Travels widely on speaking engagements. Runs two Non-profit organisations which reach out to thousands of marginalised in rural and urban areas in education and self-reliance. She has been voted as most admired (The Week) and trusted woman (Readers Digest) in India.

An unfailing sense of justice and my fierce passion to stand up for what is right encouraged confidence in my team. The proclivity and the ability to take decisions promptly and to act as a shock absorber between my team and the powers that be, irrespective of the toll it takes in terms of stress and other psychological factors, ensured a deep-rooted loyalty. The aptitude for articulating concepts, strategies and tactics concisely and forcefully is also important. It was never about power for me. I was merely a citizen in uniform. For me, prevention of crime was the priority. Where education plays a major role in instilling ethical value systems, a healthy sprinkling of sports ensures an all-round personality development. An inherent system of internal audit does not let you stray easily and glues you to your morals. Money and status by way of recognition to a person remain hollow unless supported by a genuine concern for others. Women in India preparing for unconditional commitment to national service have to develop the will and determination to reach a mental state of giving rather than receiving. Empowered women who want to reach tough and unconventional positions learn to make choices instead of sacrifices and do not permit any disrespect to her self-respect and dignity. Tough times go, but the tough stay on … !”

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

CONSPICUOUS BRAVERY

FROM OFFICER TO INSPECTOR GENERAL For me the years spent in the state of Uttar Pradesh working as a field officer in various districts was certainly challenging. It was extreme hard work and the sweat and toil on the grounds of my Alma Mater did not go waste with long hours of work in the crime prone districts of UP where murder, dacoity, kidnapping, extortion, road holdups are a challenge to any police officer.

hile I reflect back on my 24 years in the Indian Police Service, I cannot but remember myself as a three-four year old child walking to Chalet Day School on the Mall Road, Shimla, situated midst pine trees. My father, also an Indian Police Service officer was posted then as the Superintendent of Police of Shimla. As I trod the path to the school, the policemen on duty smiled and saluted me and I arrogantly returned the salute as if it was meant for me! That salute lay silently embedded somewhere within me and knowingly or unknowingly, made me to decide in later years, to take up a career as an Indian Police Service officer.

Training

With the blessings of my parents and guidance of my teachers, I joined the service with only a single motto that I would try to do and be my best. In a batch of 83, we were eight lady ofﬁcers, the largest women contingent over the years. Twenty six months of training with the National Police Academy at Hyderabad saw the body, soul and mind enter new areas of learning and experience. While the mind learnt innumerable laws of the country, along with subjects such as Public Order, Criminology, Investigation, Forensic Science etc, the soul was repeatedly tried and tested with the subject of Ethics. The body seemed to have been thrown into a churning machine with gruelling taskmasters who under the hot noon sun of Hyderabad on the sun-baked grounds of the Academy tried to make us learn various drills, master usage of innumerable weapons, accomplish obstacles courses where one tumbled and fumbled but ﬁnally made it, to master the motions of various gymnastic jumps and rolls, to climb slithering ropes and jump across pits and

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

walls, to stay desperately astride galloping horses and those afraid of water clinging for breath while trying to stay afloat, not to miss the adventure and fear of rock climbing and the Saturday long cross-country runs. There never was a moment when time appeared to halt, it was all sweat and toil, making one experience new dimensions of endurance and self-realisation. It was here that I met my soulmate and partner. From here we were marched off to our respective states to face challenges unknown. For me the years spent in the state of Uttar Pradesh working as a field officer in various districts was certainly challenging. It was extreme hard work and the sweat and toil on the grounds of my Alma Mater did not go waste with long hours of work in the crime prone districts of UP where murder, dacoity, kidnapping, extortion, road holdups are a challenge to any police officer. I too tried to deliver my best. The expectant public who came from near and far was at the doorsteps at 6 am in the morning waiting to narrate their woes, ranging from land disputes, family disputes to various crimes, the agony of which they had to suffer, there was never a moment when one felt that the day was over and my task was complete. Every day ended with the realisation that still a lot remained to be done, to bring justice to the aggrieved men and women coming to my doorsteps.

Gallantry Award

The long years in service also made me realise that the public stood with you if you were fair to them, even if justice seemed far and remote to them. My senior officers in the initial years of my service definitely felt that would I be able to meet the challenges, while being given charge of various field postings, but they reposed faith in me and I tried to live up to their expectations by working that extra bit to prove that women could be equal to any

mention my challenge as a woman who simultaneously played the role of a mother to two children, Gauri and Keshav, as a wife and as a daughter-in-law. My son at the tender age of seven months would wake up in the wee hours of the morning when I returned from long hours of patrolling as a young police officer. I guess the immense satisfaction I got from my job gave me the strength to take out time to nurture and to take care of my children. With the support of my husband and other family members, I was able to play various roles bestowed on me as a woman and at the same time dedicate myself to the job at hand. To all the girls who are aspiring to a career in the uniformed services, I wish to say that nothing can be more satisfying than to The writer with her husband Mr Ashish Gupta be able to wipe a tear from an old lady’s good male officer, if not or an aggrieved I have been on a UN Peacekeeping better. It was as a result person’s eye, to be Mission to Kosovo for 12 months of this faith of seniors and able to help bring as a CIVPOL officer where I subordinates that I went some justice to the on to be awarded the needy, to the poor worked as liaison officer to the Gallantry Medal, first and to all those Organisation for Security and to be received by a lady who come with Coperation Europe, International officer in the state of Uttar the hope and faith Criminal Tribunal for former Pradesh. I went on to that they would Yugoslavia (ICTY) and UNMCR as join the National Police be heard. The well as a teaching faculty with Academy where I served police forces do the Induction Training Centre for five years and trained not discriminate officers of the Indian between a lady Police Service. Thereafter and a male officer, was picked by the Central Bureau of Investigation, though as I have mentioned, where I supervised cases having national and a lady police officer may have international significance. to work an extra mile to prove herself. But once done, the sky is My journey as a police officer brought me back to my the limit. It is during my career cadre where presently I am working as Inspector General that I was decorated with the (Intelligence) for the state of UP. Police Medal for Gallantry by the President of India for an act of This long journey would remain half told, if I fail to conspicuous bravery.

TILOTAMA VARMA IPS

The writer belongs to the 1990 batch of the Indian Police Service and was allotted to the state of Uttar Pradesh. She has done BA (Hons) in English and Bachelor of Law (LLB). She has held numerous assignments in Police, the main being executive policing (10 years), training (4-1/2 years), investigation of corruption cases (4 years) and presently Inspector General Intelligence for the state of UP. She has been decorated with the Police Medal for Gallantry for conducting successful and gallant operations against criminals. She has been on a UN Peacekeeping Mission to Kosovo as a CIVPOL ofﬁcer where she worked as liaison ofﬁcer to the Organisation for Security and Coperation Europe, International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and UNMCR as well as a teaching faculty with the Induction Training Centre. She was with the National Police Academy as a Trainer. She worked as Dy Inspector General of Police with the Central Bureau of Investigation, where she supervised investigation and trial of extremely important cases related to corruption.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

ATTRACTIVE CAREER OPTION?

OPEN MINDED

APPROACH

AIR MARSHAL ANIL CHOPRA PVSM, AVSM, VM, VSM (RETD)

To flatten the otherwise steep pyramid that results in poor promotion prospects and in turn disgruntlement, the government took a conscious decision to increase the strength of Short Service Commission (SSC) officers for both men and women. In the Indian armed forces there is an acute shortage of officers especially of high calibre as the armed forces do not offer an attractive career option. This shortage can be made up at least partially through induction of highly motivated and competent women officers.

erious participation of women in military goes back only 400 years. French Joan of Arc in 1431 and Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi in 1858 are two very world famous women warriors. For various reasons, mostly men have been enrolled for war fighting. Many women of course braved the battlefield as nurses and aides in First World War. Russians were the only ones to employ substantial number of female combat troops. A front-line Light Cavalry in Cossack regiment was commanded by a female colonel. Some of the units were more for propaganda and were disbanded after the war. In World War II, 500,000 had combat role in anti-aircraft units in Britain and Germany and in front-line units in Russia. In Britain they were reportedly never employed in a task that meant pulling a trigger, as killing the enemy was considered to be ‘too masculine’. They were deployed closer to London where there was no risk of getting captured by the enemy. More recently, their role in the military and more so combat has been intensely debated. Since early 1970s, increasing numbers of countries have assigned additional roles to women in their militaries. The issue of combat role for women in Indian armed forces has been hotly debated in the media in the last five years. Women and social groups have been pressing the cause with political parties, most of which rightly back women empowerment. The parliamentary committee on Defence has been repeatedly urging and prodding the Services for induction of more women in the armed forces. Ministry of Defence finally prepared a policy paper on the road map for women in the three Services. As a father of two successful working daughters and till very recently the head of Human Resource Department of Indian Air Force (IAF), I thought it is time to put some facts in perspective.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Ground Reality

Women were ﬁrst inducted into Indian armed forces in 1992 mostly in Short Service Commission (SSC). Today there are 1,300 (3.4 per cent) in the army, 410 (3.9 per cent) in the navy and 1,200 (11.5 per cent) in the IAF. Compare this with Israel (33 per cent), France (19 per cent), USA (14.6 per cent), Australia (13 per cent), Canada (12 per cent), Russia (10 per cent), Britain (9 per cent), Germany (7 per cent), China (7.5 per cent), and Pakistan (1 per cent). Barring Pakistan, all countries started inducting women into the armed forces much earlier than India. All countries went through an evolutionary approach while inducting women into the otherwise male centric armed forces. Detailed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) were evolved for induction of women. Also the operational and administrative guidelines for Commanders were prepared for their induction into the armed forces.

Permanent Commission

Permanent Commission (PC) for women in Indian armed forces has been cleared in Legal and Education branch in all three Services. Induction of women in the army is permitted in EME, Signals, Engineers, Ordnance, Intelligence and Service Corps. All branches of the Indian Navy except Submariners and Divers; and all branches in IAF except the fighter stream are open to them. Permanent Commission is available to women in the Accounts branch of IAF and constructors in the Indian Navy. On directions of the Court due to an ambiguous recruitment advertisement, the IAF had to grant one-time PC to over 300 women officers from various branches. To flatten the otherwise steep pyramid that results in poor promotion prospects and in turn disgruntlement, the government took a conscious decision to increase the strength of Short Service Commission (SSC)

The writer is an ex NDA Air Force ﬁghter pilot. He is a Test Pilot who was among the intial lot to train on Mirage 2000 in France. He Commanded a Mirage Squadron, two operational air bases and the IAF’s Flight Test Centre ASTE. He also headed Directorate Inspections.

ofﬁcers for both men and women.

In Combat Zone

Due to the intense threat environment and small population, Israel has had women in uniform since the country’s formation in 1948. For first 25 years, Israel employed women only in human resources and administrative branches of their armed forces. Today they form 33 per cent of the force. Ninety-two per cent of all jobs are open to them but only 3 per cent are actually enrolled for combat roles in Israel. The women in Pakistan armed forces are mostly doctors and nurses and some in the Education Corps. Pakistan cleared women pilots in its air force in 2006 and the first four fighter pilots were commissioned into the Pakistan Air Force in 2009. The US employed nearly 40,000 women in Iraq.

Currently, there is no shortage of male applicants for recruitment in the Indian Army; it is the training capacity that limits inductions. The Indian society is not ready for an Indian woman being taken a prisoner especially by an enemy such as Pakistan. The percentage of women in combat around the world is still insignificant so why the rush in India?

The fact that only two were taken prisoner in Operation Desert Storm and three in Operation Iraqi Freedom reconfirms that they were mostly employed in combat support tasks. Significant number of US women soldiers sustained injuries in Afghanistan doing non-combat tasks. These were due to fatigue stress and strain. In the Chinese armed forces, women serve mostly in military support roles. In 2009, the first batch of women was commissioned into the People’s Liberation Army Air Force as fighter pilots. Like in many other nations, most combat positions remain closed to them, including those on the front-line. An Israeli Military report indicates that female combatants displayed higher levels of alertness, were more knowledgeable about the use of weapons and had better shooting abilities than men. The UK allows all roles for women except where there is possibility of direct engagement with the enemy. France has very few women in combat roles and does not allow in submarines and in riot control force. Some of the countries like Canada and Australia hardly have any threats and are unlikely to ever go into combat as such are not the best models for comparison.

Case For Increased Induction

Equality of sexes, women’s liberation, women reservation and conquering of the last bastion are terms of today’s real world. Their own beliefs notwithstanding, many men ﬁnd it politically and socially expedient to support this cause overtly. It is often quoted by Indian women

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

ATTRACTIVE CAREER OPTION?

A significant number of units in the three Services are single officer units. Since, the system has to cater for non-availability of the lady officer during her maternity leave; they cannot be posted to these units. Current government policy allows maternity and child-care leave which cumulatively amount to three and half years. To cater for the absence from duty of a larger number of such cases, the total cadre strength would have to be suitably increased. Besides, there are administrative problems related to women especially in field conditions that result in additional burden on the units

GUTSY FIGHTERS AND TOWERING LEADERS

that many countries have women in combat roles, even Pakistan has ﬁghter pilots, LTTE and Naxal women engage in combat. Other arguments are that men also take sick leave, furlough and study leave and are missing from duty for months and years, so what if a woman goes through a few pregnancies. Jhansi Ki Rani and Razia Sultana were great combat leaders. Indira Gandhi gave astute political leadership during the 1971 War with Pakistan. The President of UPA, leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha and the Speaker are all women. There are a number of powerful and effective women Chief Ministers in the country. In the Indian armed forces there is an acute shortage of ofﬁcers especially of high calibre as the

armed forces do not offer an attractive career option. This shortage can be made up at least partially through induction of highly motivated and competent women ofﬁcers. In the US, women can serve on as well as command a ship. So far, most women ofﬁcers in the Indian armed forces have acquitted themselves exceptionally well. Since the police, BSF and CRPF all have women battalions why not the Indian armed forces?

The Counter Point

The Indian armed forces are meant for national security and are not a social equity employment agency. Studies in the West have indicated that women have 45 to 50 per cent less upper body strength and are much more prone to fractures and bone injuries. Same has been proved in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many men feel that the military women should be required to compete at same levels of fitness as men. To the contrary, presently physical standards stipulated for women around the world are definitely lower. It is often argued, sometimes unfairly, that the Indian society is still evolving and jawans in the army are still not ready to accept women as leaders in combat. Further, to get to positions of command, women will first have to serve in various junior-level posts and compete with men. Currently, there is no shortage of male applicants for recruitment in the Indian Army; it is the training capacity that limits inductions. Most women officers choose to marry within the Service for easy co-location, a practice that has implications for cadre management in the Services. Then there are issues about lady officers being put on night-duty on a single-officer night shift with many other lower ranks. A significant

JOAN OF ARC RANI LAKSHMI BAI

RAZIA SULTANA

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

INDIRA GANDHI

number of units in the three Services are single officer units. Since, the system has to cater for non-availability of the lady officer during her maternity leave; they cannot be posted to these units. The Indian society is not ready for an Indian woman being taken a prisoner especially by an enemy such as Pakistan. The percentage of women in combat around the world is still insignificant so why the rush in India? There are a large number of professions in which women excel and are no less important and can be better utilised. Current government policy allows maternity and child-care leave which cumulatively amount to three and half years. To cater for the absence from duty of a larger number of such cases, the total cadre strength would have to be suitably increased. Besides, there are administrative problems related to women especially in field conditions that result in additional burden on the units.

Interestingly a 2008 study by a female military student in the USA found that female cadets saw military training as an opportunity to be strong, assertive and skillful. Also they had to constantly prove that they were capable. On the other hand, of the many female cadets interviewed in this study 84 per cent said they did not want a full time military career because it would interfere with marriage and having children.

The Way Ahead

In 2013, US Army passed an order that allows women same opportunities as the men in combat arms. They will take part in new training courses. The areas covered will include training in unexploded ordnance awareness, biometrics, forensics and evidence collection, tactical questioning, vehicle and personnel searches and instructions on homemade explosive devices. Women may begin Army Ranger training by mid-2015. This change will open up hundreds of thousands front-line positions for women, some positions possibly even leading to elite commando jobs for women. It would mean revision of policy of “no women in units that are tasked with direct combat”. Target is 2016 for all assessments to be complete and have women fully integrated into all roles in the army. On January 24, 2014, the US Army announced that 33,000 positions that were previously closed to women would be integrated by April 2014. In December 2012 US had its ﬁrst three female submariners. Larger numbers would join the force by 2015. The Indian society gives great respect to women. Mythology is full of goddesses Durga (Strength), Lakshmi (Prosperity) and Saraswati (Learning) among others. In India, women have excelled in all walks of life from Mother Teresa, Lata Mangeshkar to Kalpana Chawla. Best summed up by the father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi, “To call woman the weaker sex is a libel; it is man's injustice to woman. If by strength is meant brute strength, then, indeed, woman is less brute than man. If by strength is meant moral power, then woman is immeasurably man's superior. Has she not greater intuition, is she not

Increase Permanent Commissions

Slow but steady change has been the universal approach and the Indian armed forces must adopt the same. Services should gradually open PC to 5 per cent women to begin with. Select the women toppers in performance among the SSC at 14 years’ service. Government must increase the overall cadre strength to cater for greater absence. IAF must induct and train a few fighter pilots, up to around 10 and make a review after five years. Collocation constraints should be made clear to all serving officer couples. A good balance between compassion and operational priority can easily be evolved. A practical upper cap in percentage of women, comparable to modern countries could be put at around 12 per cent. The same may be reviewed every 10 years. The issue of command of combat units may also be visited in years ahead. The aim should be to find ways to induct women rather than create logic to deny them opportunities.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

INTROSPECTION

TIME FOR POLICY REVIEW AND COURSE CORRECTION

Earlier, entry of women was kept restricted to the Army Medical Corps, the Army Dental Corps and the Military Nursing Service for decades. It was in 1990 that a decision was taken to grant Short Service Commission (SSC) to women in some select non-combat branches in the three Services. To date, no one has been able to justify the decision to induct women in the Services – it was not a need based policy.

Services – majority of Indian troops are deployed on active combat duties and there are few safe appointments; India is still a second generation technology force which is trying desperately to upgrade; and India is not short of suitable male volunteers. Earlier, entry of women was kept restricted to the Army Medical Corps, the Army Dental Corps and the Military Nursing Service for decades. It was in 1990 that a decision was taken to grant Short Service Commission (SSC) to women in some select non-combat branches in the three Services. The first batch joined in 1992. Earlier the period of their pre-commission training was 24 weeks. It has now been increased to 49 weeks. Barring the medical stream, women officers are inducted on short service commission in select branches of the three Services. As per the information provided to the Parliament in August 2012, the women officers in the army, navy and air force constituted only 3.3, 3.9 and 10.4 per cent of the officer cadre respectively. The number of women officers in the services was 1,214, 302 and 1,079 respectively. These figures exclude the medical stream women officers.

The Current Policy

As a number of women officers felt aggrieved at the denial of Permanent Commission, they approached the Delhi High Court. The Honourable Court, in its ruling of 12 March 2010, held the denial of Permanent Commission to the applicant officers to be discriminatory. In pursuance of the court orders, the Services accommodated all applicant women officers in Permanent Commission as a one-time exception. Fearing further litigations and court interventions, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) decided to evolve a well-considered and comprehensive policy on induction of women. It sought inputs from the Services. A policy paper was prepared by a High Level Tri-Service Committee. It was forwarded to MoD after the approval of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. Keeping in mind the role and responsibility of the armed forces, the new policy was promulgated on 11 November 2011. As was being done earlier, it allowed induction of women officers as SSC officers in the following branches / cadres:

he Services are a highly disciplined and hierarchical organisation. Resultantly, commanders enjoy unbridled power and tend to acquire misconceptions of their infallibility, resulting in faulty decision-making. The decision to induct women, taken in the early 90s by a Service Chief, was one such decision. India aped foreign militaries – ‘if other armies can have women, we should also have’. Thus, the decision was taken in a cavalier, hasty and slapdash manner. It was neither need-based nor well thought-through. No attempt was made to study likely long-term implications of multiple issues involved.

induction in any military is guided by three basic imperatives. One, countries with secure borders and peaceful environment can accommodate more women in their militaries and assign passive duties to them as compared to militaries facing hostile internal and external environment. Two, technologically advanced militaries generate considerable requirement for highly skilled women for high-tech non-combat support functions whereas low-tech militaries are always manpower intensive and depend on extensive physical ground effort. Finally, some countries have to recruit women to make up deﬁciency of required number of male volunteers.

Parameters For Women’s Entry

When judged against the above parameters, India does not lend itself to the induction of women in the

It is a well established fact that the extent of women’s

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

 Army − Engineers, Signals, Army Aviation, Air Defence, Electronic and Mechanical Engineers, Army Service Corps, Army Ordnance Corps, Intelligence Corps, Army Education Corps and Judge Advocate General.  Navy − Judge Advocate General, Logistics, Observer, Air Trafﬁc Controller, Naval Constructor, Education.

To date, no one has been able to justify the decision to induct women in the Services – it was not a need based policy. Low-tech Indian military is totally dependent on raw physical strength of its manpower and women are biologically unsuitable to undertake such tasks. There is no shortage of male volunteers

 Air Force − In all branches and streams except fighter stream of flying branch. There is no separate fixed sanctioned strength for recruitment of women officers and they are recruited within the overall authorised strength of officers in the respective service. Women SSC officers are eligible for consideration for grant of Permanent Commission along with male SSC officers in specific branches in the three Services viz Judge Advocate General and Army Education Corps of army and their corresponding branches in navy and air force; Naval Constructor in navy; and Accounts, Technical, Administration and Meteorology Branches in air force. However, grant of Permanent Commission is subject to willingness of the candidate, Service-specific requirements, availability of vacancies, suitability and merit of the candidate as decided by each Service.

An Infructuous Decision

MAJOR GENERAL (DR) MRINAL SUMAN AVSM, VSM (RETD) The writer heads Defence Technical Assessment and Advisory Service (DTAAS) of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). He did MSc in Defence Studies and Doctorate in Public Administration. He commanded an Engineer Regiment in the most hostile battleﬁeld in the world ie, the Siachen Glacier. He was awarded a gold medal for being 'the most outstanding engineer of the year'. He was the ﬁrst Technical Manager [Land Systems] when the newly created Acquisition Wing was established in the Ministry of Defence in 2001. He has been closely associated with the evolution and promulgation of the new defence procurement mechanism.

Although standards of physical fitness for women have been pegged at appallingly low levels, most women fail to achieve them. For example, males are required to jump across a 9 feet wide ditch with full equipment and personal weapon; women are unable to negotiate the prescribed 5 feet wide ditch. There have been reports of entire batches failing to qualify. Many women find it difficult to withstand prolonged physical and mental pressures of the Service. Concerns have been expressed about the women officers being highly prone to back problems, pelvic injuries and stress fractures. One does not need to be a visionary to understand that grant of SSC to women at 24 years of age is the most impractical proposition. That is the time for them to get married and raise their families. With standard two child norms, they spend most of their service tenure in producing and nursing children. For every delivery they are exempted physical activities for a period of three years – one year pre-natal and two years post-delivery. It implies that a woman officer is rarely in a position to participate in field exercises and has to be exempted all outdoor work. Worse, some women never participate in outdoor

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

INTROSPECTION

Many routine duties (like patrolling, night duty checks) cannot be assigned to women. they are required to visit troops’ barracks at lights-out to ensure that all mosquito nets are down and even check the cleanliness of latrines. As women officers cannot be assigned such duties, male officers have to undertake additional work load, which they resent exercises, claiming that they are trying to conceive and physical exertion can cause miscarriage. Thus the Services gain little and are in fact taken for a ride. To start with, the tenure of SSC officers was five years, extendable to 10 years. With the recent increase in women’s service to 14 years, a woman officer can become second in command of a unit and officiate as its commanding officer as well. In an Engineer or Signal unit she would be an advisor to the Divisional Commander. Without having commanded a platoon or a company and without having attended essential professional courses, it would be unfair to expect her to be able to perform. It is often claimed that women are inducted to make up the shortage of male officers. There cannot be more ludicrous argument. There is no shortage of male volunteers to join the Services but many candidates are found to be unsuitable. In the case of men, the Services do not want to dilute the standards even marginally in the fear of compromising the quality of intake. However, when it comes to women, standards are reduced to ridiculously low levels.

Is Anyone Happy?

Although women have been serving in the militaries of developed countries for a long time, they are still grappling with various functional, social, behavioural and psychological issues involved. Women’s absorption and adjustment has not been smooth in any military.

The profession of arms is all about management of violence. Soldiers’ behaviour, ethos and attitudes are conditioned accordingly. The environment tends to acquire a certain degree of coarseness which many consider to be alien to women. Many women complain about lack of job satisfaction. They feel that their talent is not given due recognition and their competence remains underutilised. Some women feel that despite their technical qualiﬁcations, they are generally detailed for perceived women-like jobs – either a routine desk work or duties related to social minutiae. Most of the women opting for a career in the Services belong to families where their upbringing has been in a highly sheltered environment. A career in the military is at the other extreme. They admit having limited knowledge of military life at the time of joining. Subsequently, life in the military comes as a big shock to them. While some adapt to it well others ﬁnd the task to be too daunting. For example, whereas swimming is a compulsory training exercise, many refuse to wear swimming costume.

‘Man’ Management Problem

Management of women officers is a great challenge for the environment. After a tough field tenure, every officer looks forward to a good peace posting to be with his family and sort out family issues. But a large number of peace postings at junior officers’ level are held by women officers on compassionate grounds, thereby depriving male officers of their due share. It has become a sore point with many. Many seek special dispensation being the weaker sex, conveniently forgetting the fact that they had joined the military on the plank of equality of sexes. They avoid field exercises on some pretext or the other – either they are not well or the children are small or the children have school tests. Consequently, male officers have to do women’s share of duties as well.

Notwithstanding the public posturing, the overall feedback with the experience gained over the last 20 years has been highly discouraging. Although commanders admire women for their commitment, sincerity and enthusiasm, they show reluctance to have women under their command. It is not a question of chauvinistic male bias. It is just that the women cannot be assigned many duties. There have been cases when unit commanders have preferred to be deficient of their authorised officer strength rather than have women officers. They consider them to be a liability as considerable resources have to be diverted to ensure their comfort, dignity and safety, without commensurate advantages. Many routine duties (like patrolling, night duty checks) cannot be assigned to women. For example, every officer is detailed as a duty officer and has to visit the Quarter Guard and all sentry posts at midnight to ensure their alertness. Similarly, they are required to visit troops’ barracks at lights-out to ensure that all mosquito nets are down and even check the cleanliness of latrines. As women officers cannot be assigned such duties, male officers have to undertake additional work load, which they resent. Interestingly, some male officers feel that presence of women amongst them tends to make the environment ‘formal and stiff’. They miss their light hearted banter which all militaries consider essential to release work tensions and promote group cohesion. They consider women to be intruding on their privacy. As regards their acceptability as leaders, most soldiers consider their induction to be a political gimmick that merits no serious deliberation. “How can a leader, who is unable to carry her personal weapon and equipment and keep pace with us, be expected to lead us in war?” is a common refrain of soldiers. Notwithstanding the above, India is proud of the fact that women in the Indian Services are being treated in a manner befitting their dignity and self respect, despite the traditional social background of the Indian soldier.

Suggestion For Action

Air Marshal Padmavathy Bandopadhyay

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Lieutenant General Punita Arora

In early 90s, when the euphoria on induction of women was still raging, a group of Junior Commissioned Ofﬁcers (JCOs) was overheard discussing the issue in all seriousness. The oldest JCO in the group remarked, “The Army has enough problems at hand. I do not know why another one is being sought.” Another JCO made a conﬁdent declaration, “The Army is going to rue its decision in near future.” There was a rare unanimity in the group – they were all convinced that the move to induct women was ill-conceived and totally unwarranted. Events of the last few

The current policy of non-induction of women in combat arms should continue. For that matter their entry into Engineers, Signals, Supply Corps and Ordnance (and equivalent branches of the air force and the navy) should be deferred for the time being years have proved their apprehensions to be prophetic. The said group of JCOs could foresee what the top brass of the Services failed to. True to their propensity for damaging their own cause, the Services are in a deep mess which is totally of their own making. Instead of earning kudos for giving women a chance, the Services are getting flak from the judiciary, media and self-appointed experts. Demands are being made to grant Permanent Commission to women in the combat arms, a demand that is unprecedented in any army of the world. Worse, some have gone to the ridiculous extent of demanding constitution of all women battalions. A matter that critically affects the health of the Services has been belittled as one of ‘equality of sexes’. Women must continue to play a dominant role in the medical, dental and nursing services. Their contribution in providing medical support to the soldiers has been invaluable. They have done India proud by rising to three-star ranks. Lieutenant General Punita Arora and Air Marshal Padma Bandopadhyay, both of the Medical Corps, were the first to attain the ranks of Lieutenant General and Air Marshal respectively. As stated above, grant of SSC to women is a totally wasteful exercise and should be stopped. They should only be considered for Permanent Commission in Judge Advocate General and Army Education Corps of army and their corresponding branches in navy and air force; Naval Constructor in navy; and Accounts, Technical, Administration and Meteorology Branches in air force. In addition, they could also be considered for Permanent Commission in the Survey of India, Military Engineering Service Militarised Cadre, Director General Quality Assurance and such organisations. The current policy of non-induction of women in combat arms should continue. For that matter their entry into Engineers, Signals, Supply Corps and Ordnance (and equivalent branches of the air force and the navy) should be deferred for the time being. The policy could be reviewed after a few years, once the environment becomes more conducive for their productive employment. It should never be forgotten that the sole raison d'être for the constitution of the military is to ensure security of the country. It is not a ‘rozgar yojna’ (employment scheme). The armed forces need the fittest person to perform assigned tasks. Therefore, decisions which have a far reaching effect on the potential of the armed forces must be taken with due diligence and not on account of political and populist expediency.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

SHORT SERVICE BARRIER

LEADING BY PERSONAL

EXAMPLE I was the first girl from Allahabad to get selected to join Indian Army in September 1993 and I was commissioned into the AOC in the year 1994. I was posted in Siliguri. So I first tasked myself to get accepted by my jawans as their leader. As a leader I displayed various skills on ground which helped raise the morale of my troops. You have to lead by personal examples and by taking initiative.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

ndia was beginning to rise during the early nineties. One of the angles was to promote women empowerment. What better way to showcase to the world the untapped glamour than Indian women in uniform? Yes the authorities – the Indian government in agreement with the Indian Army came up with the idea of inducting women in defence. I strongly believe the decision-makers at that time did not think beyond gaining brownie points at global level. Simultaneously the records showed there was a sharp dip in the number of suitable men at the selection stage ie SSB centres which caused low intake of men in officer’s cadre of defence forces. The workload was in abundance as usual and male officers were decreasing in number. The only alternate solution was to bring in women officers. At that time they only thought of filling the vacancies at a junior level. No one gave the slightest thought that what would be the future face of this new genre – the women officers!

Pioneers

The ﬁrst batch of Indian Army lady cadets (25 in number)

joined the Ofﬁcers Training Academy (OTA) Chennai in September 1992. After undergoing rigorous training schedule of six months the LCs (Lady Cadets) passed out proudly as commissioned ofﬁcers in corps like Army Ordnance Corps, Army Service Corps, Judge Advocate General Branch, Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, Army Education Corps, Signals Corps in March 1993. By the time this great breaking news made way to smaller towns of the country, I was already consumed by the information. Being brought up in a town where girls were trained by the parents “how to avoid the unruly male youth loitering all around” my ideas were always clear that I have to take a shape where in I get a chance to rectify the system which was so very gender biased especially in a small town like Allahabad.

The initial years were no doubt very tough for all women officers. We had to prove we are an asset to the organisation. We constantly were underestimated and rebuked by some of the male officers. We proved all such hollow men wrong. The only recognition came to us was in terms of granting extension of our short service of 5 years to 10 years I was the ﬁrst girl from Allahabad to get selected to join Indian Army in September 1993 and I got commissioned into the AOC in the year 1994. I was posted in Siliguri.

Capabilities

You can never underestimate the capability of any woman and the same went true for women in uniform. We were resilient, strong and focused. We did everything that an officer is supposed to do. I as a lady officer worked regimentally to ensure that my behaviour and persona qualified to be

addressed as an officer and not like a lady ... after all I had to command respect from men! I faced many challenges. To get accepted by the lower ranks especially ‘jawans’ was an uphill task in itself. The jawans had never seen a lady boss. They hailed from rural parts of India wherein they had seen women in the background only. They were not so broadly educated that they would understand the position and power of women in urban India. India though was rapidly changing yet the Indian Army never changed. It followed the British culture and rules because it believed that to prepare a human being to fight for the country a very high degree of discipline in daily life is required. No one will otherwise be ready to lay his life for the nation. So I first tasked myself to get accepted by my jawans as their leader. I started with morning drill at 5.45 am with the troops and I ran miles during the PT period along with them. As a lady it was very difficult to tune with ruggedly built trained tough men but i did not give up. ‘It’s all in the mind’ my adjutant in the training camp had told us. I tuned my mind first. Automatically my body struggled to be in sync with my mind. Soon I was matching my steps with my troops. I even commanded a drill leading at least 100 men in a drill contingent in Inter Eastern Command drill competition. And guess what, my contingent won the trophy. The morale of the troops has to be kept high. As a leader I displayed various skills on ground which helped raise the morale of my troops. Once a python attacked one of the camps of my troops at midnight. I was the first one to reach there after getting the information. I evacuated all my troops and led the reptile to eat a monkey thereby ensuring there was no human life lost.

LT COL ANKITA SRIVASTAVA (RETD)

The writer is a lady of vaulting ambition and volcanic passions and is Allahabad’s first girl to join the pioneer batch of Indian Army in 1993. Having participated in Op-Kargil, she completed 14 years in the tough domain where every day was a challenge being a lady Officer. Accustomed to taking challenges, after army, she undertook 180 degree opposite challenge and walked in ‘TANISHQ’ Beauty pageant 2008 carving a new leaf by winning it! Next she created history when she stunned the nation, winning ‘Most Vivacious Woman’ award at GLADRAGS Mrs India 2009. In 2010, she joined as the first lady security officer in SBI. As she brought total discipline, she got conferred with State Bank’s Excellence Award, given first time to a lady security officer. Simultaneously, she then began leaping cheerfully into creativity (her hidden passion) as she authored her debut book – The Pink Scarecrow.

You have to lead by personal examples and by taking initiative. I followed this mantra to the hilt. Once a major fire broke in the nearby jungle adjacent to our unit. I rushed with my team of firemen to control the fire. After successfully controlling the fire we lost our way in that thick forest which was famous for wild elephants. I kept my calm and kept morale of my men high leading them with my navigational skills that I acquired in my army training. It was getting very difficult as the smoke from the fire and tall dense

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

SHORT SERVICE BARRIER

trees obstructed my vision completely but I did not let anyone lose hope. Meanwhile help arrived from my unit as the news reached my Commandant.

When the ULFA militants launched an attack on my troops enroute, I took position with my AK56 gun to protect my troops.

Camaraderie

Message To Girls

As women leaders all lady officers score an edge over male officers when it comes to understanding human psyche. I could see through my jawan. I could relate to his mental agonies if he was going through from the family end. I could even reach to the spouses of my jawans and they would feel more related to their husband’s ‘boss’. Any jawan misbehaving with his wife or having an eye for another woman was sorted out in my office in seconds.

I wouldn’t say anything only that my heart pains to see my worth being discarded by the Indian Army just after 14 years. Like me there were so many other worthy women ofﬁcers in our batch who were told to go home after 14 years. We women have taken the biggest ever challenge a woman can undertake – shaping our femininity in such a manner that it acquired masculinity which was the need of the organisation. Then why are we left out after 14 years ... now where do we go to retrieve our lost femininity?

Indian defence forces had aptly I wouldn’t say anything only inducted women in the streams that I was lucky – gods sent me an that my heart pains to see my did not require active combat with opportunity. I walked the ramp the enemy. There is no question of for a beauty pageant for married worth being discarded by the becoming a prisoner of war (POW). women organised by jewellery Indian Army just after 14 years. The service corps are more like store Tanishq in Allahabad and, Like me there were so many other administrative jobs yet handled guess what, I won the pageant not worthy women officers in our with precision and with a great sense because of some beauty skills but batch who were told to go home of discipline. These streams did not because of my sheer confidence and after 14 years. We women have exclude us from active participation the training I had undergone in the taken the biggest ever challenge a during two of the major Operations Indian Army ... I could take up a woman can undertake – shaping I was involved in my 14 years of 180 degree opposite challenge and our femininity in such a manner tenure ie – Operation Kargil and yet win it also. My next adventure that it acquired masculinity which Operation Parakram. I performed was when I got selected as one of was the need of the organisation my designated role that was 22 finalists out of 2000 married provision of arms, ammunitions, women across the country for vehicle spares and military clothing Gladrags Mrs India 2009. There I and delivering them to the fighting arms. I stayed in learnt the art of acquiring my lost femininity and I stunned forward areas in tents with my troops and I worked for the nation as I created history when I was announced 12 hours a day. The fighting forces are dependent on us ... winner of ‘Most Vivacious Woman’ award. I couldn’t have let them down ... the nation’s safety comes first in a fauji’s mind. The woman of substance that Indian Army has converted me into has helped me leap multidirectionally. Recognition I got the honour of taking over as specialist officer The initial years were no doubt very tough for all (Security) in State Bank of India – first lady army officer women officers. We had to prove we are an asset to the in Delhi Head Office. And my uprightness has fetched organisation. We constantly were underestimated and me the laurels of being the first security officer of rebuked by some of the male officers. We proved all such SBI to get awarded “Excellence Award”. hollow men wrong. The only recognition came to us was in terms of granting extension of our short service of The hobby of writing has resurfaced now when I don’t 5 years to 10 years. I established myself well in my 5 years. have to go on PT and parade and my bones itch to do Officers were convinced I was one of them. Officers’ something worthwhile. I have been actively writing stories wives found me unthreatening – I had become so male and articles. I am proud to tell you all that I could write like. As I started to inhale and exhale the masculine olive a book titled – The Pink Scarecrow. In absence of formal green air into my lungs religiously, I itched to showcase training in writing, I don’t claim I have written a great piece my hobby of writing too. On behalf of my Commandant, but yes I have attempted to get into a male army officer’s (late) Brig Yadav, I wrote history of Cawnpore Club mind and pen a fictional romantic suspense through this on its centenary year celebration in 1998. I began novel. It is widely appreciated across the country and is writing in army journals and unit magazines. available on all online bookstores. The blood that flows in my veins is Olive Green. And you would sense this fact in In the second phase of my service I was posted to the my second book titled – From Olive Green to a Beauty Queen Counter Insurgency area of north-east. I had the priveledge which is a fictionalised autobiography. of serving in dangerous areas like Along and Walong in Arunachal Pradesh. We travelled in utmost masculine form Yes I would advise girls to join army for acquiring ... me being the only woman in the group of six persons. From the upright persona which will help them sail smoothly jumping atop a huge high streamer boat that helped us cross all through their lives. But don’t look at it as a career river Brahmaputra to squeezing my uniform and weapon option – it is not easy to be a man all the time when you are laden body into a small shaky ‘dinghi’, I did everything born a woman. Even your kids will find it difficult to grow strange and dangerous in a fun way. up amidst two dads in the house!

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

MULTI-SKILLING

INADEQUATE TENURE, WASTED ASSETS When this trained manpower becomes full-fledged functional manpower and an asset to the organisation, Indian Armed Forces allow them to go out in search of another job based upon their developed capabilities.

s we know, capability is a talent or ability that has the potential for development or use. Indian armed forces have identified the immense capability of the women of the country and developed these capabilities in the field of logistics, legal, education, intelligence, engineering, medical, air defence artillery and in the field of security. But it is very unfortunate that the capabilities that have been developed by the Indian armed forces, have not been utilised to the maximum gain because of improper policy framed for their retention in the Indian armed forces ie for not more than 14 years. Indian armed forces train the top few selected women candidates from the entire country and utilise their services for minimum five years. When this trained manpower becomes full-fledged functional manpower and an asset to the organisation, Indian armed forces allow them to go out in search of another job based upon their developed capabilities. Thus the capabilities that are developed by the Indian armed forces are finally reaped by the public and private sector companies, like banking sector, logistics sector, engineering sector etc.

Team Spirit

It is the spirit of good friendship and loyalty among members of a group that the armed forces inculcate. It improves the team work. The initial tough training period of six months to one year for selected women candidates imparted by the prestigious training institute of Indian Army at Ofﬁcer Training Academy, Chennai develops a lifelong relationship amongst the course members. Through this relationship the entire strength of the course remains connected to each other in all good and bad times as coursemates. In the name of the course, coursemates can go to any extent to help each other. This is the true and loyal spirit that the Indian Army teaches and develops among its ofﬁcers. This is one of the major qualities that the Indian Army develops and this quality of the Indian Army is respected outside. In the parlance of the human resource this quality of the Indian Army is called team spirit and it is a mandatory quality in today's scenario for any kind

of managerial positions.

Challenges To Be Met

The various challenges that are faced by Indian Armed Forces women ofﬁcers are:

MAJOR REKHA TRIPATHI (RETD)

The writer is Deputy Manager (Security) in State Bank of India. She has done BSc, BEd and an MBA. She was in the Indian Army from March 1996 to February 2008 and participated in Operation Parakram, Operation Sadbhavna and Operation Vijay.

 Women have to be very strong both physically as well as mentally.  Indian Army is a male dominated organisation, the women officers have to prove their professional and physical capabilities after every 2-3 years, ie in front of another new set of army personnel ie Officers, JCOs and ORs. If women Officers are not able to prove their capabilities in their profession it is very difficult to command the respect of the army men.  The duty hours are not defined, Indian armed forces personnel are on duty for 24 hours as per the exigency of Services.  We need to be alert, vigilant and disciplined all the time.  We need to be medically fit.  Army officers are multi-talented as they perform number of jobs in which they do not have prior expertise. They learn these jobs while doing ie on the job training; this is a big challenge for the officer. This developed multi-skill / talent of army officers are assets to the organisation as well as outside the organisation.

Indian Army is a great organisation. It makes you physically and mentally strong. It makes you very strong, disciplined and team member. It makes you a good leader who can take initiative, take right decision at right time. The organisation teaches all the management skills that are now taught in big B schools so an army personnel is not required to go to any business school, they learn these skills on the job. Thus, I would like to say that Indian armed forces is a great organisation and if anyone has inclination to serve the nation, they must join this great organisation.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

CRPF necessitated the raising of the second women battalion in 1995 and further third battalion in 2010. The ﬁrst battalion of CRPF celebrated its silver jubilee in the year 2011 and on the same occasion the President of India Mrs Pratibha Patil took salute at the parade and made it memorable.

SUDHIR KUMAR

The writer is Commandant (PRO/OPS) in Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF). He has served in all spheres of country including militancy affected area of Jammu and Kashmir and North-east. He has done Management Course in Human Resources and Psychological Counselling. He has also worked in elite security organistion Special Protection Group (SPG).

The challenges of internal security and public order are becoming progressively complex from all sides. Presence of women in police has contributed a lot to make positive impact on maintaining internal peace and protecting women’s rights

The empowerment of women is a necessary element for providing greater sense of security to local populations, including women and children. It helps to reduce conflict and confrontation and lays the road to development in any country. Women are proving themselves as one of the greatest assets in our developing society.

s the largest Central Paramilitary Force in the world, Central Reserve Police Force is deployed all over the country and is playing the main role in the maintenance of internal security and public order. Due to its unique capability and ﬂexibility to adapt various situational requirements with the state police, CRPF has, over the years, acquired the distinction of being, perhaps, the most acceptable force by the people and the state administrations. The presence of women in CRPF has given added advantage to the force to tackle and cope with the challenges coming from all fronts of internal security and public order.

Complexities of Internal Peace

The challenges of internal security and public order

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

are becoming progressively complex from all sides. Presence of women in police has contributed a lot to make positive impact on maintaining internal peace and protecting women’s rights. The empowerment of women is a necessary element for providing greater sense of security to local populations, including women and children. It helps to reduce conflict and confrontation and lays the road to development in any country. Empowering women enhances their ability, confidence in shouldering their responsibility to influence the changes in society for the better. Women are proving themselves as one of the greatest assets in our developing society. They are equal to men in all spheres of society including police and paramilitary forces like Central Reserve Police Force.

In Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), the women empowerment process has already achieved great heights. Their performance is emerging as an unparalleled endeavour. A steady improvement in the enrolment of women in CRPF has been clearly visible all over the country and abroad as well. As per the vision and courage of late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, the government of India approved the raising of Indian women armed force. Central Reserve Police Force got the privilege to raise the ﬁrst women battalion of a paramilitary force not only in India but the world as well. Passing out parade of ﬁrst women battalion of Central Reserve Police Force was inspected by the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on 30th March 1987. CRPF is the only paramilitary force in the country which now has three women battalions.

First Taste Of Riots

Immediately after its training, first women battalion took up the task of quelling the riots in Meerut with their male counterparts in 1987. On their very first call during the communal riots in Meerut, women battalion proved their commitment, exhibited high standard of discipline and won laurels for its work while on duty by their firm and effective handling of the situation. The successful experiment of the first women battalion and the growing requirement of a women component in dealing with emerging law and order situations

In addition to three exclusive women battalions, there is a women contingent in all ten battalions of Rapid Action Force (RAF), exclusively trained battalions of CRPF which could be deployed to deal with other internal security duties only during certain emergent needs for short durations and control riots and render help to the innocent persons devastated by riots. The presence of women on active duty inspires trust and faith in the minds of public against fear of high-handedness by force and inspires security among them.

The strength of women in Central Reserve Police Force is now more than four thousand in three women battalions and Rapid Action Force consisting of two hundred seventy women officers and doctors. Present Director of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy (SVPNPA), Mrs Aruna Bahuguna has also served as a Special Director General of CRPF and became the first women officer to be appointed to the top position in the hierarchy of the force.

Varied Assignments

The women personnel of Central Reserve Police Force have done well in controlling communal riots and rendering assistance at the time of natural calamities. Women squads are deployed in the insurgency prone areas of Jammu and Kashmir, North-east and low intensity warfare areas. Their role and contributions in guarding Parliament of India, airports, central jails, Shri Amarnath Yatra and various sensitive places like, Ayodhya Temple, Commonwealth Games at Delhi and other places has always attracted attention for averting various types of major threats to the country. Women members of Central Reserve Police Force have never hesitated to sacrifice their life and have shown gallant actions during course of their duty. Constable Kamlesh Kumari of CRPF was awarded Ashok Chakra posthumously, the highest peacetime gallantry award for sacrificing her life for protecting India’s highest seat of Indian democracy – the Parliament House – on December 13, 2001. She was the first uniformed woman in Indian history to be awarded the

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

Women members of Central Reserve Police Force have never hesitated to sacrifice their life. Constable Kamlesh Kumari was awarded Ashok Chakra posthumously, the highest peacetime gallantry award for sacrificing her life for protecting India’s highest seat of Indian democracy – the Parliament House – on December 13, 2001. She was the first uniformed woman in Indian history to be awarded the Ashok Chakra posthumously Ashok Chakra posthumously. Constable Bindu Kumare laid down her life to defend Srinagar Airport and awarded the Police Medal for Gallantry (PMG) posthumously. Constable Bimla Devi was awarded Sena Medal for her gallant action in Sri Lanka. Ms Santo Devi, Assistant commandant awarded President Police Medal for Gallantry for repulsing attack on Ayodhya Shrine.

Donating Body Parts

On the occasion of the Silver Jubilee of women joining the CRPF on 8th March 2011, more than a thousand CRPF women pledged to donate their organs after death to the needy. The idea was to serve the country even after death. The President, Mrs Pratibha Patil, remarked that she had tears of pride and joy in her eyes at the gesture. The members of women battalion are equally well trained in handling of all sorts of small arms, in field craft and tactics and other related subjects, at par with their male counterparts. Apart from working under difficult and unfavourable circumstances they have excelled during their duty and deployment within country as well as members of peacekeeping missions abroad in Sri Lanka and Liberia. In Sri Lanka, one company of women battalion was deployed as an important constituent of the Indian Peace Keeping Force during 1987. The working conditions in Sri Lanka were tough even for our men. It therefore came as a surprise to everyone when CRPF women took their assignment with least fuss. During search and frisking duties they recovered arms, ammunitions and explosives in large quantities in Sri Lanka and Constable Bimla Devi received Sena Medal. She became the first Indian woman to be conferred with the Sena Medal (which till then was given only to for army personnel) for her bravery.

Liberia Deployment

Having faced various operational challenges in all corners of India and Sri Lanka, women contingent soon embarked on another overseas mission for conducting United Nations peacekeeping operations in Liberia, West Africa. This was the first time in the history of UN, a fully formed female unit was posted in Liberia as a part of United Nations Peacekeeping Mission where civil administration had completely broken down due to long lasting strife and unrest. The unit was deployed in Liberia in January, 2007. The deployment of CRPF women as world’s first female UN peacekeeping force has been a great success in Liberia and since then their tenure is being extended every year for proving their efficiency and competence in maintaining peace and order within and outside the territory of India. Till now seven batches have already been sent in Liberia.

Sports And Adventure

CRPF women have come to the forefront and emulated

women in uniform

CRPF

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

the feat of the men. The women of CRPF have also carved a niche for themselves in sports and adventure activities. They have earned seven Arjun Awards so far. These include Ms Kunja Rani second in command (Weightlifting), Insp Neelam Lakshmi (Weightlifting), Insp Shilpi Singh (Shooting), Ms Sanamacha Chanu, Asst Commandant (Weightlifting), Ms A Anita Chanu Asst Comdt (Judo), Insp Geeta Rani (Weightlifting) and Insp Tombi (Judo). Ms Kunja Rani, the Arjun Awardee in weightlifting, is also receipent of the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, Tata Birla Award and Padma Shree. She is the only person with a record of having highest number of medals / awards in sports history, amongst all Indians. In Commonwealth Games women weightlifters A Sandhya Rani and L Monica Devi bagged bronze medals and in Asian Games, M Bimoljit and W Sandhyarani bagged silver and bronze medals in Wushu, China. On 9th April, 2012 on the occasion of Valour Day, an all women pipe band was launched by Mr Jitender Singh, then Minister of State, Home. This is the world’s first women band in a paramilitary force which has again set a new example for others. In 2013 the all women pipe band created history by welcoming Mr Pranab Mukherjee, President of India, during his arrival at Pragati Maidan to inaugurate the ‘India International Trade Fair (IITF), 2013’. This event was significant in that the first time in history of Trade Fair that the President of India was welcomed by the band of CRPF, instead of the usual Indian Army Band. CRPF has the proud privilege of raising the country’s first all Women commando team in 2013. They have undergone a tough commando training for three months at Jodhpur Police Academy, Rajasthan. They have been trained in various aspects like hostage crisis, rescue operations, providing proximate security, counter-terrorist operations, counter suicidal attacks and providing additional security at special events.

Welfare Activities

The role of CRPF Wives Welfare Association is also important for overall success of the force. This force has its own challenges. The soldiers remain away from their families and CRPF Wives Welfare Association emerged as a forum to help families in doing what all they need in absence of the head of the family. CRPF Wives Welfare Association takes care of housing to education, healthcare, entertainment, social interface, career counselling and so many other areas that need due attention. CRPF Wives Welfare Association has undertaken various schemes relating to the overall well-being of CRPF personnel and their family members. These efforts also include various initiatives taken in the field of education of children, extra earning for the family through Family Welfare Centres, rehabilitation of widows / disabled, vocational training to family members of force personnel. Women in Central Reserve Police Force have justified their duties in all aspects and proved themselves equal to the male counterparts. The courage and fortitude displayed by these women during performing duties both in India and abroad are exemplary and sacrifices being made by them makes every women of our country proud.

ADRENALINE RUSH

AMBITION B

AND FULFILMENT

orn and brought up in a quiet and uneventful town of Jabalpur, I come from a regular middle class family with hard-working parents who placed a lot of value on good education. The town offered comfort but was often very predictable to the future it would grant to the growing women in the early nineties and that was inevitable maze of matrimony after a decent graduation. An opportune advert in the newspaper on government’s decision to induct women officers in defence forces in the early nineties was probably the opportunity my soul waited for and I could never let it go. This steered the course of my life. Exciting training schedule of a soldier, feeling of an adrenaline rush in getting into crisp blue uniform and various opportunities that I got in both professional as well as adventurous field then became part of my life for the next fifteen years. Coming from the pioneer batches of women officers, there were challenges such as trying to make people take

LIFE IN THE ARMY

he life in army in the management jargon is a line organisation where the power and authority rests with the top management and ﬂows in a chain of command to the last person in the unit. The spirit of the military training can be epitomised in two sentences – “You can do it” and “You have to do it” former evolves out of the physical training while the latter pertains to mental orientation. In today’s fast changing world when all other institutions have been shadowed by the clouds of corruption, it’s perhaps the defence forces which are looked upon with respect. Today when the qualities like honesty, integrity and sincerity are only talked, armed forces shoulder the responsibility of practicing and upholding them. There is a wonderful camaraderie; a spirit you get when lot of people together have the same purpose – they're all trying to do the same thing – and share the same dangers. It teaches you to become a team

WG CDR NEELU KHATRI (RETD)

you seriously on work atleast in The writer is Exceutive the initial years. The organisation Director, Pipavav Defence became more confident and started & Offshore Engineering inducting women in other fields as Company, New Delhi. well in flying, in aircraft engineering, in Air Traffic Controlling and now except for fighter jet pilots, women are everywhere in the Indian Air Force. The case of inducting them as fighter pilots is being vehemently advocated (esp when our neighbouring country of Pakistan has inducted them too) and I personally think it is just a matter of time that we will see a woman flying the supersonic jet of IAF. My journey in uniform has been fantastic with loads of experience and immaculate training that now help me deal with the maze of the corporate world. Today when I deal with complex projects and their implementation plans, I just think back on my days in uniform and somewhere I find I already have a solution from the learning of my glorious past.

member where team goal takes priority over the individual and promotes team spirit. Army teaches you to lead a disciplined life with a purpose. It’s only the armed forces where the officers are taught that the safety of the nation and the troops comes ahead of your own safety and comfort. Women in the army were inducted first in the year 1992 after navy and air force. Today there are more than 2,000 women officers serving in the Indian Army which is still a miniscule part of the third largest army in the world. Lady officers are also performing equally well in the fields that they have been inducted in as their male counterparts and bringing laurels to the organisation. An officer is an officer and they go through the same selection system and undergo similar training.

LT COL ASHA KALE (RETD)

The writer is an ex-army ofﬁcer with 14 years of service in the Army Ordnance Corps, presently working in a defence company in the ﬁeld of business development.

At a very early age, we get a lifestyle and a social status that one cannot imagine in any other profession. There are lot of extracurricularactivities,scopeforadventureandexcitementand the most important job security. I come from a civilian background and married to an army ofﬁcer. Today I work in civil but coming from the army gives you that extra edge over others. I am proud of having been a part of a wonderful organisation called Indian Army. Jai Hind! …

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

GOSSAMER’S WINGS

SOARING HIGH

Not wanting to miss out on family life, I chose to have a family and am a proud mother of two children, both of whom are Pilots. In fact, my family maybe the only family in the world to have all four members as Airline Pilots. I started my ﬂying career at a very young age and in 1989, became the youngest woman jet captain in the world. I was also inducted into the Captains Club by the

was at one time the youngest ever Jet aircraft pilot in the world to being the ﬁrst Woman Pilot of the Boeing B787 Dreamliner, for an Airline. Right from my school days, as early as I can remember, I had set my sights very high. At the time when my classmates were learning grammar and numbers, I was busy scripting my own destiny.

The sight of eagles soaring high in the blue skies fascinated me and I longed to be one, with them. The school was also very strategically located, just behind the Flying Club, in Delhi and I would be mesmerised by the roar of engines and the Golden Yellow wings dancing every now and then in the window panes of my classroom. At a time when there was only one Woman Airline Pilot in India, it was a dream woven on Gossamer’s wings. The cost of ﬂying was very high and job prospects very bleak.

I have been a member of the Indian Women Pilots Association and the Ninety-Nines Inc since 1982 and am the Governor of the India Section of the Ninety-Nines, which actively helps in promoting ﬂying and aviation education. After more than three decades of being in aviation, I now want to mentor young children and help them make their dreams come true.

But a dream dreamt is a wish fulfilled. And so began my journey when I was just 14 years old. As I was too young to start flying, the Gliding Instructor advised me to take up aero modelling. It was a start, at least. So after a few months of making wooden aero models, I sat in the cockpit of a glider when I was just 15 years old. By 16, I was flying solo and also taking passengers for joyrides. Sometimes I would reach the Gliding club straight after school and the joyriders would be thrilled when they saw their young pigtailed Pilot for the day.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

CAPT NIVEDITA BHASIN

The writer became the world’s youngest woman pilot in world civil aviation history to command a commercial jet aircraft, Boeing on 1 January 1990 at the age of 26. She led the all-women crew of the Boeing ﬂight as commander on the Hyderabad- Visakhapatnam route. She became a commander on Airbus A300, with over 8,100 hours of total ﬂying experience. On 8 March 1999 she commanded Airbus A300 on the Delhi-Kathmandu route to mark International Women’s Day. She brought the sleek new Dreamliner aircraft (VT-AND), the second to be inducted by Air India, from US’ Charleston to the Indian capital, as the only trained woman pilot in the world for the B-787.

For young girls who look forward to a challenging career, aviation is a great choice, but the skies are unforgiving. Negotiating bad weather can be very tricky at times. It seems very glamorous and rosy but it requires lots of self-discipline. Sometimes the airplane can also develop snags. At that time, the Pilots have to take decisions very swiftly and correctly. For this reason, Pilots have to be alert at all times. A Pilot has to be very healthy, physically and mentally as long hours in a plane can be very taxing. Regular exercise, swimming or playing some sport is really helpful. Yoga is excellent for the mind and body too and has a calming effect on the nerves.

My parents were extremely supportive of my wanting to fly and never doubted my decision or ability. For them, I had made the decision and they were confident that I would have to go full steam ahead to achieve my dream. No one ever gave a thought as to how the finances would be arranged. Learning to fly was a very expensive proposition but this did not deter me. I was so determined that nothing could stop me from reaching for the skies. I was awarded a scholarship by the Bihar government and I left home to stay with my maternal grandmother and uncles in Patna. It was a very tough life for the next two years. Unfamiliar surroundings, away from home, travelling by public buses, walking for miles in the scorching heat and sitting for hours in the flying school was hardly easy. Besides the fact that it was very lonely too, as there were no girls in the flying school. In the early eighties, it was a very unusual sight to see a girl flying a plane. At every stage it was a struggle, but flying brought so much of joy that every problem seemed trivial and every thorn a challenge that only made me stronger and strengthened my belief that very soon I would be in the cockpit of one of the big jetliners.

Today, I have flown almost every plane that flies the Indian skies. The Fokker Friendship F27, Boeing B737, Airbus A300, Airbus A330 and now, the Dreamliner Boeing B787. With over 16,000 hours of flying, I am proud to say that I have flown to and from almost the whole world, except South America. As an Airline Captain, I have flown to Europe, Great Britain, Africa, Asia, Australia, Japan and also flew the Dreamliner from the US.

After obtaining my Commercial Pilot’s License, I trained to become a Flight Instructor and soon joined Indian Airlines as its third Woman Pilot. I started my career in Calcutta and ﬂew the Fokker Friendship F27. While training and ﬂying the F27 I met my husband to be, also a Pilot on the F27 then and we were soon married.

ISA+21, the International Organisation of women Airline Pilots. In 1991, I was invited to Atchison, Kansas, USA, the birthplace of the famous aviatrix, Amelia Earhart and my name was engraved in a marble plaque and placed alongside world famous personalities of aviation like JRD Tata, Chuck Yeager and Rajiv Gandhi.

There have been several trying times in my career, but at each stage family or friends have helped and supported me. “Where there is a will, there is a way”, has been my mantra, always. Being sincere and truthful gives a lot of strength and the rest fall into place. Given a chance, I would love to explore space. “Never say, never” is what I believe in. (In the cockpit of the Dreamliner B787, returning from Sydney to Delhi, February 2014.)

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

SHINING HORIZONS

CASE FOR WOMEN RECRUITMENT IN ARMED FORCES Cynical observers made a mockery of the sombre subject matter by referring to it as 'conquering the last male bastion’. It is apparent that such viewpoints belong to personal mindsets rather than on clinical evaluation. All over the world, governments are advocating the removal of gender bias from defence force combat roles.

t’s odd how proud Indians are of Rani Lakshmi Bai and Queen Razia Sultana! Odd because our pride in these women – undeniable mascots of gallantry and courage, has not translated into conscription of women into defence in modern times. Women were also a part of the Indian National Army raised by Subhas Chandra Bose to ﬁght the British. Women in the military have a history that extends over 400 years into the past. Women have played many roles in the military, from ancient warrior women, to the women currently serving in conﬂicts, even though the vast majority of all combatants have been men in every culture. The role of women as soldiers and warriors has been evident in history for centuries. As early as the 15th century, Joan of Arc, is said to have led the French Army during the hundred years’ war against England.

belong to personal mindsets rather than on clinical evaluation. It must be stated here that both military and non-military experts are equally guilty of disdain. While in many western countries women have reached top position in defence forces commanding thousands of troops, squadrons and battle ships, the same cannot be said for India. Cases of sexual harassment and asking for sexual favours from female counterparts by male seniors, has not helped their case either. Women have been relegated to medical and administrative positions in the armed forces in India and only now they are being given Permanent Commission but only in law and other non-combat areas. The pie chart shows the percentage of women compared to men employed in Defence.

This role has expanded rapidly during World War II. They were inducted into war industries, building ships, aircraft, vehicles and weaponry, architecture etc. They provided logistic support for soldiers and soon enough gained an entry into professional areas of work that were previously the preserve of men. However, the Indian Army did not induct women for 47 years, after independence. It is said that the idea to induct women into the Indian Army first came after a senior army officer witnessed lady officers giving the Guard of Honour in the United States of America! This milestone was achieved through generation of considerable debate, both, within and outside defence circles. The debate acquired the hue of a gender issue with terms like equality of the sexes and discrimination against women thrown in for good measure. The issue was reduced to ‘equality of sexes’ and ‘women’s liberation’ rather than staying focused on bringing more combat potential into the armed forces by recruiting women. Cynical observers made a mockery of the sombre subject matter by referring to it as 'conquering the last male bastion’. It is apparent that such viewpoints

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Global Women Recruitments

All over the world, governments are advocating the removal of gender bias from defence force combat roles. It is being

issued in countries like Australia, Canada, South Africa and USA that the categories of Clearance Divers and Mine Warfare and Clearance Diving Officers in the navy; infantry, armoured corps, some artillery roles, explosive ordnance disposal squadrons and combat engineer squadrons in the army; and airfield defence guards and ground defence officers in the air force will all be made open to women over the next five years. Indeed the number of women joining the ranks and opting for a career full of excitement and vigour is steadily on the rise. In 1992, in an important landmark decision the Indian Army took up the induction of women into the officer cadre. The first batch of women Short Service Commission (SSC) comprising of 1,200 Lady cadets was commissioned in 1993. Defence not only means the combat but Medical, Dental, Nursing and Ordnance are also some of the fields in this sector. Women should be allowed Permanent Commission in every field, if not combat, given her body restrictions and safety and security risks. It needs to be stressed that the Services carry no male chauvinistic mindset. Wives and daughters of Service officers excel in all fields indicating that Service officers do not suffer from any gender bias and are very supportive of women’s advancement. However, the issue of women’s induction in the Services warrants singular treatment.

Recently the government of India made it clear that it has no proposal to induct women in combat roles in the defence forces including as fighter pilots in the Indian Air Force. But Parliament was also informed that there has been a 67 per cent increase in the recruitment of women officers into the army, navy and air force in the last three years BSF Exception

potential of the armed forces must never be compromised. Women should be inducted in the Services only if they prove to be an asset to the forces. National security must not be forsaken at any cost.  Women cannot perform all physical tasks as well as men: Standards of physical fitness of women can never be the same as those of men. It is a biological reality and is true for all fields including sports. In the case of women officers, Indian Army has lowered the standards to appallingly low levels. Even then many women fail to qualify during their pre-commission training. Whereas male cadets are required to run 5 km in 28 minutes, women are given 40 minutes.

VINITA AGRAWAL

The writer is a Gold Medallist in MA, Political Science from the MS University, Baroda. She is a researcher and poet and has worked freelance for over 20 years. She has published papers on Comparative Analysis of Media in India and Pakistan and Cultural connectivity in the SAARC region.

A recent review conducted by the British Army concluded that women have neither the upper-body strength nor the physical resilience to withstand intensive combat. Tests in 2,000 respondents found that women were eight times more likely than men to sustain injuries other than wounds in action.

 The need for women recruits is deﬁned by unique situations: Broadly speaking, countries like Canada and Australia face no internal or external threat and their militaries are generally in peacetime mode with routine passive duties. Thus they can afford to have a larger percentage of women in their forces. Contrast this with India where the majority of army troops are deployed on active combat duties in remote, inhospitable and uncongenial areas. Only physically ﬁt and tough troops can survive. Peace is short-lived and tensions erupt at any point in time.

The Border Security Force (BSF) has an all women battalion to guard borders. An all women battalion is deployed on the international border. However, the following important facts need to be highlighted:

Therefore, the Indian armed forces continue to be physical-power intensive and will remain so in the near future. Women cannot substitute for men and survive in India’s harsh conditions.

 Male officers lead the battalion.  The battalion is positioned away from the Line of Control where firing and infiltration attempts are frequent. Instead, it is stationed near Ferozepur, which is a zone of peace between India and Pakistan.  Here women do not perform night guard duties. Only males perform such duties.

Interesting Trivia

The purpose behind raising this BSF Women battalion is to allow local village women to cross borders to till their land. The task of the all female battalion is to act like a sentry to these locals. The force may not be a ﬁghting force but it is a remarkable assembly of an all-women unit in the military.

Women serve in the Pakistan armed forces as soldiers. Pakistan is the only country in the Islamic world to have women appointed in the high ranking assignments and the General Ofﬁcer ranks as well as performing their military duties in the hostile and combat military operations.

Reality Check

Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) was the ﬁrst service of the Sri Lankan military to allow women to serve. The Sri Lanka Army followed in 1979 with the establishment of the Sri Lanka Army Women's Corps (SLAWC). Since then, each

 Women cannot get equal opportunities in the Services: The concept of equality of sexes exists scientiﬁcally. Hence in an effort to appease gender activists, the ﬁghting

The ﬁrst female American soldier was Deborah Sampson of Massachusetts. She enlisted as a Continental Army soldier under the name of “Robert Shurtliff”. She served for three years in the Revolutionary War and cross dressed as a male soldier. 74 per cent of all the roles in the armed forces are available for women in Australia.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

SHINING HORIZONS

the world. Hundreds of women are said to have complained of sexual assault on a regular basis. In this context, the Indian armed forces can be rightfully proud of their record which is

women in uniform PRIDE IN THE SERVICE

THE HIGH SOUL CLIMBS

THE HIGH WAY!

service has for both administrative and practical reasons maintained separate units for women.

ention of the IPS stirs up images of tracking criminals, handling law and order situations, managing trafﬁc, getting the bad guys ... Yes, life in the Police Service is all this and more. No amount of planning or training can prepare you for the actual situation in the ﬁeld. One cannot even predict one’s itinerary for the day. And that is just what makes this Service attractive – the wide range of problems one has to face.

Roza Shanina, a Soviet sniper during World War II was credited with 54 conﬁrmed target hits.

New Hope

Recently, the government of India made it clear that it has no proposal to induct women in combat roles in the defence forces, including as ﬁghter pilots in the Indian Air Force. But Parliament was also informed that there has been a 67 per cent increase in the recruitment of women ofﬁcers into the army, navy and air force in the last three years. The number of women now employed by three forces combined can be seen in the pie chart. The Bar chart shows the cadre wise breakup of women recruits in 2009-2011.

I joined the IPS in 1979. The training was spread over the Foundation Course in Mussoorie, Civil Defence in Nagpur, the Basic Course at the National Police Academy in Hyderabad and the practical training in AP. As the first woman IPS Officer of AP I was something of a novelty wherever I went, especially in uniform! I drew curious crowds in cities, towns, villages and bombarded with the usual questions – why did you join the Police, how does it feel being an only woman in a male bastion, how do you cope, how do you balance home and work? Expectations were always high. Society expects a woman to be sympathetic, diligent, honest, understanding, compassionate, a good listener, a problem solver. Above all, to be empathetic. My first posting was Assistant Superintendent of Police, Madanpalle in Chittoor district, bordering Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. It was notorious for criminals operating across the border. Highway dacoities and robberies, thefts, prostitution and gambling were the main crimes. Regular patrolling paid sound results. Persistent investigations led to good detection. Preventive measures resulted in social evils being brought under control. The public were happy with very visible preventive measures. My first case was the murder of a man in a forested area, by his brother. The deceased’s young son provided the crucial lead. Every little clue was essential in detecting the case and securing a conviction.

Acceptance of women in the military has not been smooth in any country. Despite efforts made to sensitise the environment, they continue to be confronted with social, behavioural and psychological problems at all levels. To date most countries do not allow women tank crews because of the cramped conditions and lack of privacy. Sexual harassment and assaults of women soldiers is known to be blatant and quite prevalent in the defence forces all over

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

far better than that of any advanced nation in the world. The classic definition of women is that they are a combination of beauty, brain and courage. They are right there in every field, in every place. So why should defence services be any different? Indeed, it is heartening to see that the number of women who are being inducted in various branches of defence services is on a steady rise.

Law and order situations were common when I was Joint Commissioner, Law and Order, Hyderabad. Riots were frequent and had to be handled ﬁrmly yet tactfully. Challenges varied, ranging from communal tensions to student unrest to animosity between neighbouring groups to resistance over civic and trafﬁc enforcement. Being a woman was sometimes an advantage as criminals and goondas were perplexed and didn’t know how to react when faced with a woman cop! As Superintendent of Police of the Women's Protection Cell, which was poorly staffed and badly handicapped for infrastructure, the subordinate staff, unbeknownst to me, found their own solution to handling problematic

men – they simply spread a rumour that I dealt with recalcitrant males by meting out severe physical punishment – as a result men quickly compromised with their wives and marital discord was hastily resolved! I often come across children named after me, as a token of appreciation! There have been ups and downs in my career, as in life. Jealousies, difﬁcult postings, prejudices. I have learnt to brush them away, take them in my stride and move on. There is an air of negativity around the Police in our society, but when one is sincere there is appreciation and that is what makes the challenge worth accepting. It is a career which offers unimaginable insights into and understanding of human behaviour. Variety in the people you meet, places you see and cultures you experience. There is great job satisfaction as policing is an important yet difﬁcult task, to be performed well, against all odds.

ARUNA BAHUGUNA IPS

The writer the First Woman IPS Officer of Andhra Pradesh, 1979 batch, is the first woman to head India’s premier training institute, The National Police Academy (NPA) for IPS officers, selected by the Union Public Service Commission since its inception in 1948. She was the Special Director General of Central Reserve Police Force, the country’s largest paramilitary force. Recipient of the President Police Medal on 26th January 2005, she is a most amazing and scintillating combination of guts, intellect and talent as she is the All India Women’s Golf Champion who enjoys playing the guitar and piano.

As Director of the National Police Academy, I am proud to be heading the Institution where I began my career and I look forward to training young and bright youngsters who will be serving and protecting our Country. I hope to instil in them dedication, honesty and pride in the Service. My inspiration has been the following poem:

The Way

To every man there openeth A Way, and Ways, and a Way, And the High Soul climbs the High Way, And the Low Soul gropes the Low, And in between, on the misty ﬂats, The rest drift to and fro. But to every man there openeth A High Way, and a Low. And every man decideth The way his soul shall go. − John Oxenham I continue to be inspired by the above poem which I learnt during my childhood.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

INDIAN ARMY

CHANGING PERSPECTIVES AND PERCEPTIONS

non-combat roles like nursing, clerical and other support tasks, it is only the Russians who are known to have deployed women in combat roles in the two world wars.

The debate regarding role of women in Defence Services is not peculiar to India. The role of women in armed forces across the world has been dynamic and evolutionary with societal changes in socio-cultural and economic milieu.

Roza Shanina, a Soviet sniper during World War II, credited with 54 conﬁrmed target hits. About 400,000 Soviet women served in front-line duty units, chieﬂy as medics and nurses.1

istory of women in Indian Army goes back some 80 years with women having played an important role in the medical services in the two world wars and wars since independence. However, the entry of women into the officer cadre of other arms and services commenced only in 1992 when a decision was taken to grant short service commission to women in selected arms and services. Two decades down the line, dissatisfaction with their terms of engagement amongst women officers has led some of them to approach the courts to seek redressal. Expectedly, they are supported in their endeavours by various women’s groups, leading women lawyers and political leaders. Aggrieved women officers are seeking an enhanced role and Permanent Commission instead of short service commission as originally envisaged by the Defence Services. The matter is sub-judice in the Supreme Court. Under pressure from the courts, the army has made provision for grant of Permanent Commission to women officers in the Army Education Corps and the Judge Advocate General’s (Legal) Branch. A study has also been accomplished to holistically review the terms of engagement of women officers, which could lead to enlargement of the role of women officers by opening up additional avenues in various arms and services.

Historical Overview

The debate regarding role of women in Defence Services is not peculiar to India. Women are seeking an enhanced

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

role even in the US Army where the women have been associated with the military since 1775. At that time, the women were employed largely in civilian roles of nursing, laundering and mending clothing and cooking. It was only in 1917 that the ﬁrst woman was enlisted in US military. Later, in 1948, a law was passed that made women a permanent part of US military and only in 1976, the ﬁrst group of women was admitted into a US military academy. It was only in 2013 that a 1994 policy prohibiting women from being assigned to ground combat units below the brigade level was overturned to allow women the same opportunities as men in combat arms. Today, women reportedly serve in 95 per cent of all army occupations and constitute 15.6 per cent of the 1.1 million US Army. The role of women in armed forces across the world has been dynamic and evolutionary with societal changes in socio-cultural and economic milieu. While in most armies of the world, women were initially employed in auxiliary,

Even in the Israeli defence forces where military service for women is mandatory today, the women initially served in the Women’s Army Corps, as clerks, drivers, welfare workers, nurses, radio operators, ﬂight controllers, ordnance personnel and course instructors till the late 1970s and early ‘80s when roles beyond technical and secretarial support started to open up. Equal opportunities to women opened up only in 2000 with promulgation of the Equality amendment to the Military Service law enabling entry of women into artillery, infantry and armoured units. Of the defence forces of all countries in the world only New Zealand, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Germany, Norway, Israel, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan and the United States allow women to serve in combat roles.

Combat Role – Issues And Perspectives

The ultimate role that women seem to seek for themselves in armed forces is a combat role. The aspiration would appear to be rooted in female psyche which would deem to have attained true equality with male counterparts only once this exclusive male bastion were broken. Viewed in that context, is resistance to allowing women a combat role response of a male dominated force, which would not want to see this bastion broken? Is women’s attitude rooted in the second-wave feminism, which attempted to combat social and cultural inequalities? Does biology impact behaviour? There is a need to develop an understanding of issues impacting role determination for women in armed forces to comprehend reasons for non-acceptance of combat role for women by the military hierarchies as well as the rank and ﬁle even in armies where such a policy decision has been politically imposed.

Biological Differences

Any discussion / emphasis on biological differences as a

factor in role determination is bound to be deemed as sexist especially by women’s organisations because this tends to be linked to ’gender stereotyping’, the very malaise, which women’s organisations have been attempting to undo through ‘feminist / women’s liberation movements’ since the eighteenth century. Charles Darwin taught that women were biologically inferior to men and anthropologist Paul Broca who gave his name to the region of the brain responsible for speech production, stated: “We are therefore permitted to suppose that the relatively small size of the female brain depends in part upon her physical inferiority and in part upon her intellectual inferiority.”2

LT GEN SN HANDA PVSM, AVSM, VSM (RETD)

The writer was commissioned into 5th Battalion of the 3rd Gorkha Rifles in November 1971. He fought the Indo-Pak War 1971 in the Kargil Sector. An alumnus of National Defence College, he is a seasoned Infantry officer with vast experience in desert warfare, low intensity conflict operations and internal security. He was Chief of Staff of Srinagar based Chinar Corps before assuming command of Jodhpur based Desert Corps and was Chief of Staff of South Western Command before retiring as Director General Infantry in 2011.

However, available scientific evidence based on research studies / findings as late as 2010-13, quite a few by women psychologists / scholars, suggests that brain differences between men and women do influence their behaviour. Writing in The Guardian (May 2010), Simon Baron-Cohen asserts that ‘its not sexist to accept that biology affects behaviour. Biological determinism has been attacked for underpinning gender stereotypes but this is to misunderstand our work’. To quote, “However, I don't think biological determinist theories have much to do with this issue (gender stereotyping) and rejecting biological determinism makes no sense. We don’t want to revert to the 1960s view that human behaviour is purely culturally determined, since we now know that view was profoundly mistaken. No one disputes that culture is important in explaining sex differences, but it can’t be the whole story. Men and women don’t just differ in terms of their genitalia, but in other important ways. For example, there are more than 1,000 genes on the X chromosome. Since women have two X chromosomes but men only have one, this genetic difference has an impact.” Unquote.3

Hannah Mecaskey in her review of Chapter 16 “Biological Basis for Gender Behaviour” from Piper and Grudem’s A Response to Evangelical Feminism, states, quote, “Gregg Johnson brings out some interesting points about the bases for behavioural difference between men and women: biological factors. Since the natures of men and women have been historically debated, Johnson suggests that to truly understand the biological factors for the different typical behavioural patterns of men and women, “we should actively eliminate all cultural elements that continue to foster traditional attitudes that the sexes might be differently gifted,” (280) since culture tends to largely deﬁne the gender roles of behaviour. However, studies in gender stereotypes identiﬁed drastically different characteristics between

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

INDIAN ARMY

The relevant aspects in this regard in the Indian context would be: Success of government and NGO initiatives in achieving the goals of women empowerment and gender equality in urban areas. However, in rural areas from which the vast majority of the Indian Army rank and file is enrolled, the old gender stereotype of the woman continues to exist making it difficult for them to accept women in leadership roles in combat situations men and women. Men had higher levels of these traits: “aggressiveness, dominance, self-conﬁdence and activity level” while women had higher levels of “verbal ability, compliance, nurturance and empathy scales”. Ethological observations (those based on group social behaviour of humans and animals) deduce that males, being more assertive and aggressive tend to be more socially dominant than the women. Since women tend to be more nurturing, they serve as primary care givers submissive to the dominant territories erected by the men. In non-nervous system physiology, ethological observations allow males to be more aggressive because they convert more energy to muscle and power faster and in greater quantities than women, who tend to store the energy in fact, allowing them resilience to nurture their young. Women have more sensory nerve endings in their skin, not allowing them to withstand physical extremes as well as males. Johnson makes an interesting observation that “sex differences present in all the organ systems across various mammalian species go far beyond the superﬁcial anatomical characteristics necessary for reproduction,” (284) explaining the physiology as dictated by hormonal differences. Not only hormones dictate the gender differences based on biology, but Johnson points out how the peripheral nervous system differs between genders: women have peripheral senses allowing them to better read emotions (allowing for nurturing) while men tend to have better hand-eye coordination.

Not only do peripheral senses tend to vary per gender, but also the functions of the limbic systems, which is the “seat of drives and emotions” (285). Again, Johnson ties the correlation between amounts of testosterone and estrogen to dictate the intensity of certain behaviours (such as aggression or maternal instincts) in males and females. It is well summarising the biological differences between men and women to say that anatomy dictates different needs and gifts. The evidence presented by Johnson would seem to indicate basic physiological differences between men and women, from which one can derive God-given differences for a purpose.” Unquote.4

Slide used by Dr Ute Habel, psychologist and psychotherapist to illustrate the power of gender stereotypes. “Gender might be the most inﬂuential factor in our lives, starting even before birth,” she stated. “In everyday life, we continuously deal with gender differences and sometimes we struggle with the peculiarities of the ‘typical’ male or the ‘typical’ female.”2

Demographics And Socio-Cultural Milieu

The relevant aspects in this regard in the Indian context would be:  There is a youth bulge in the country today, with more than half of India’s population under the age of 25, and 65 per cent of the population under 35.  A cultural shift in women’s role from being merely ‘home makers’ to ‘breadwinners’. Aspiration for higher standards of living necessitate both husband and wife working.  Availability of a vast pool of male manpower for which adequate job opportunities need to be created

to avoid law and order problems due to large scale unemployment amongst male population.  Success of government and NGO initiatives in achieving the goals of women empowerment and gender equality in urban areas. However, in rural areas from which the vast majority of the Indian Army rank and file is enrolled, the old gender stereotype of the woman continues to exist making it difficult for them to accept women in leadership roles in combat situations. Emphasising this, the Army Headquarters said in an affidavit of September 2012 before the Supreme Court, ‘The interface between the leader and the led must be without any reserve or preconceived notions especially in battle conditions where jawans repose full faith in decisions / orders of the leader who is their role model and are prepared to make the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty. The combat role of woman officers must be excluded not only for the present but as a matter of policy for all times.’5

Organisational Environment

About the time the decision to induct women into the Indian Army in 1992, the army was beset with two problems – increasing shortage of officers in junior ranks and cadre management of an organisation with a steeply pyramidical officer structure. Efficient cadre management necessitated officers leaving the organisation after a serving for 10-15 years to avoid having too many superseded officers, which would be the case if the officer cadre was largely composed of regular officers. Several previous cadre management studies had recommended increasing intake of Short Service Commissioned officers by making the Short Service Commission more attractive. This, however, could not be accomplished due to lack of political will to implement recommendations for lateral transfer of Short Service Commissioned officers into paramilitary forces, public sector undertakings and civil services. Against this backdrop it would not be incorrect to assume that the decision of a conservative organisation like the army to grant Short Service Commission to women in the army was guided more by aforementioned concerns rather than gender equality considerations. However, in the following decade(s) the socio-cultural landscape in the country witnessed a sea-change with women empowerment and gender equality issues assuming an unforeseen dimension. A new-found sensitisation to these issues coupled with pressures from women’s organisations and the judiciary left the army with little choice but to review its earlier position on employment of women in the army. This led to studies in 2006 and more recently in 2013. The earlier study resulted in accepting grant of Permanent Commission to women officers in Army Education Corps and the Judge Advocate General’s Branch. The latter study is set to open more avenues for women in the army. Both the aforementioned problems continue to beset the army even today and have serious implications for the morale and efficient functioning of the organisation. These need to be given due consideration alongside concerns of gender equality. It would be fallacious to discredit the army with any gender bias. The affidavit filed by the army before the Supreme Court in September 2012 also candidly highlights some other organisational issues like, problems in management of a large women cadre because of

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Even as biological determinist theories need to be optimised to harness the full potential of women towards enhancing the effectiveness of the army, any insistence on combat roles in our environment would appear somewhat misplaced. An enhanced role for women in other arms and services based on the latest study and its follow-up would be in order even though it is unlikely to satisfy the women aspiring for full combat duties adverse impact on organisational efficiency on account of inability of women officers to attend courses of instruction due to family problems, prolonged absence from units due to inherent family-related issues and the ever-growing demand for spouse postings, all to the detriment of male officer colleagues. The affidavit also rules out combat roles for women due to the inherent risk and attendant trauma of capture by enemy. The affidavit pointed out that the basic role of the army is to fight the enemy and guard the territorial integrity of the nation. Further, it said, ‘Armed forces are maintained as an instrument of national policy and have to be organised and equipped for combat and war-fighting. War has no runners-up, hence the need for an efficient war machine that will ensure victory. Restrictions on manpower in the army necessitated multi-tasking, it said, adding that ‘every individual counts and has to measure up to combat challenges as and when time comes’.5

Experience Of Other Armies

While the socio-cultural landscape in India and European countries and the US is vastly different, some useful lessons can still be derived from the experience of foreign armies and adapted suitably to our environment. It is significant that although a political policy decision was taken in 2013 by the then US Secretary of Defence, Leon Panetta, to allow the same opportunities to women as men in combat arms, the acceptance of this decision by the rank and file is only about 50 per cent. There are serious concerns relating to adverse impact of women in a combat unit on unit cohesion due to a trust deficit; about development of romantic and sexual relationships and inappropriate fraternisation. A more insidious issue is the rape of women in the military by their own. Some have alleged that a woman in the military is three times more likely than a woman in the general population to be raped6 and in Iraq are more likely to be attacked by one of their own than an insurgent.7 There is currently a lawsuit in the US military in which the plaintiffs claim to have been subjected to sexual assaults in the military.8 A documentary called The Invisible War has been made on this lawsuit and topic.9Also worth recalling here is Kingsley Browne’s 2007 work, Co-ed Combat: The New Evidence That Women Shouldn’t Fight the Nation’s Wars. Browne emphasises biological factors like inferior physical strength and inability of the army to enforce gender-neutral physical standards, inferior response amongst women soldiers to stress and threat, adverse impact of mutual sexual attraction on unit cohesion and unwillingness of men to follow women into battle. To quote, “It is on the point of “fairness” that Browne expresses himself most scathingly. It’s not the military’s job to be ‘fair’.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

new initiative

INDIAN ARMY

An initiative of DSA It is the military's job to win wars. Our society values freedom of speech. It values the right to elect leaders. It values individual choice and market competition. All of those values are suspended in the military, sacriﬁced to the paramount need for military effectiveness. Yet on gender issues, the military seems to have decided that the desire of a relatively very small number of female ofﬁcers to reach the highest levels of command trumps the necessities of national defence.” Unquote. 10

Short Service Commission Only Answer

While, as Simon Baron-Cohen points out, any sexist application of biological determinist theories is abhorrent, the foregoing discussion sufficiently suggests existence of psychological, physiological and biological differences the fallout of some of which as related to employment of women in combat arms tends to impinge seriously on the combat efficiency of the army. Equally, David Frum points out that while conservatives often stand accused these days of standing outside the “reality-based community”, liberals can be blinded by ideology and nowhere is this more true than in the debate over women in combat. Yet to deny the highly combat-relevant differences between the sexes is to deny reality as blatantly as ever done by any anti-evolutionist – and with potentially much more lethal consequence.10 It is for consideration then, if the objectives of women empowerment and gender equality should take primacy over the effectiveness of an organisation charged with the responsibility for national defence knowing fully well that there are no prizes for runners-up in any war. Even as biological determinist theories need to be optimised to harness the full potential of women towards enhancing the effectiveness of the army, any insistence on combat roles in our environment would appear somewhat misplaced. An enhanced role for women in other arms and services based on the latest study and its follow-up would be in order even though it is unlikely to satisfy the women aspiring for full combat duties. The cadre management concerns of the army also need to be seen in the correct perspective and not as any form of gender discrimination. These concerns are addressed only through grant of Short Service Commission to women officers especially at this point in time. The conditions and terms of engagement are adequately covered in advertisements issued for recruitment into the army. Applying for a commission based on such advertisements conveys an acceptance of the laid down terms. To then drag the army to Court over

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

‘unfairness’ in same does not appear appropriate. Organisationally, the entry of women into the Indian Army has served a very useful purpose of mitigating the problems arising out of shortage of officers in junior ranks even though the intake at about 1,200 women officers could have been bettered but for ongoing court cases. The army’s perspective on the issue needs to be viewed against the backdrop of issues highlighted above and with a commitment to maintain the combat efficiency of an organisation charged with the most sacred duty of national defence and not merely through a gender issue perspective.

References 1. “Women in the Military”, Wikipedia. 2. Can brain biology explain why men and women think and act differently? By Marilynn Larkin, 12 July 2013. 3. ‘It’s not sexist to accept that biology affects behaviour’, Simon Baron-Cohen, theguardian.com, 03 May 2010. 4. “Men and Women’s Behaviour Based on Biology?” by Hannah Mecaskey. A review of Chapter 16 “Biological Basis for Gender Behaviour” from Piper and Grudem’s A Response to Evangelical Feminism. 5. ‘No women in combat please, we are in the army: Ofﬁcers not prepared to accept a female as their leader in combat’ By Gyanant Singh, Mail Online India, Published: 20:39 GMT, 16 September 2012 | Updated: 23:59 GMT, 16 September 2012. 6. “Americas | Women at War Face Sexual Violence”. BBC News. 2009-04-17. Retrieved 2013-11-16. 7. “Rep. Jane Harman: Finally, Some Progress in Combating Rape and Assault in the Military”. Hufﬁngtonpost.com. 2008-09-10. Retrieved 2013-11-16. 8. Lucy Broadbent. “Rape in the US military: America’s Dirty little Secret | Society”. The Guardian. Retrieved 2013-11-16. 9. “The Invisible War: Home”. Invisiblewarmovie.com. Retrieved 2013-11-16. 10. “The Truth About women in Combat”, David Frum, 03 January 2013.

Mission: Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam: To endeavour to create “one world – one family” Maha Upanishad Chapter 6, Verse 72

Vision: To oﬀer a global interactive platform for dialogue, debate and discussion to avoid confusion, contention and conﬂict for a safe and secure world of peace, harmony and prosperity.

he appreciation and applauds received from the readers of Defence and Security Alert magazine from around the world have inspired the conception of “DSA Dialogue”, an online interactive platform with the objective to develop a community which inﬂuences change and is value packed with analyses on paradigm shifts in defence, security, safety, surveillance and international relations. We envision DSA Dialogue as the most sought after forum for the defence, police and paramilitary forces, coast guards, intelligence agencies, corporates, think tanks, defence and security industry, airlines, hotels, critical infrastructure and establishments in India and around the world. DSA Dialogue is a daily pulpit to share your knowledge by discussing topics which resonate with global scenarios in defence, security and international relations.

DSA DIALOGUE Focus Areas  Airlines  Banking and insurance  Border security  Corruption  Cyber terrorism  Cyber security  Defence budget  Defence forces  Defence industry  Defence policies  Drugs and human trafﬁcking  Education  Environment  Entrepreneurship  Finance  Food

 Fundamentalism and jihad  Future textiles  Geopolitics  Geostrategy  Healthcare  Hospitality industry  Intelligence  Insurgency  Internal security  Infrastructure  Plants and establishments  International relations  Innovation  Science and technology  Laws and policy  Maritime security

 Military affairs  Migration  Money laundering  NATO  Naxalism  Politics  Police reforms  SCO  Security budget  Security and development  Security forces  Security industry  Social and political discord  Terrorism  Others

We invite experts and analysts from the entire spectrum of ‘defence’, ‘security’ and ‘international relations’ to initiate enthusiastic conversations and discussions that generate new ideas, unlock hidden insights, create an engrossing outlet of thoughts and make a diﬀerence for creating a more aware, safe and secure world for all of us and our coming generations. DSA Dialogue is a great way to get feedback on an idea that you want to develop further. Having a diﬀerent view and some constructive criticism is invaluable in building a global recognition for your novel idea or unique perspective.

To know more please visit: www.dsalert.org and start the dialogue now!

women in uniform

SIGNIFICANT ROLE

WOMEN AS BORDER GUARDS

The report of the Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women (2010-11) on “Women in Paramilitary Forces” observes that there is an urgent need to provide due representation to women in the paramilitary forces, that women are not given employment on compassionate grounds in these forces “on one or the other pretext” and that the Supreme Court’s guidelines on a special cell to prevent sexual harassment are not being scrupulously followed. It has “strongly” recommended that gender sensitisation programmes be made a mandatory part of the basic training syllabus.

both countries. Umpteen number of people are crossing the border for their daily needs and employment from Nepal or vice versa. Anti-national elements, drug smugglers, women traffickers and racketeers etc active in this porous border were using the innocent women in their criminal activities for long, which converted some of them into hardcore criminals. While manning the friendly border SSB has realised that anti-national and anti-social elements active on the border are using females for their nefarious activities. The male soldiers some time find it very difficult as the influx of women and children are very large on this border. Thus SSB mooted the idea to induct female constabulary and

deployed in difﬁcult terrains, mostly in isolated outposts that have skeletal basic amenities. This is also the reason most citied for the negligible percentage of women in the CPMFs. The committee found that it is just 0.55 per cent in the BSF, 1.40 per cent in the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), 2.04 per cent in the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and 0.80 per cent in the Assam Riﬂes. Only in the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) is it 4.7 per cent since this force practices “static deployment” to guard industrial units and installations. It is also only in the CRPF and the CISF that women are recruited to the posts of assistant commandants and sub-inspectors.

UPSC’s Faux Pas

The Union Public Service Commission’s notification that women officers will not be inducted into the SSB, ITBP and BSF came barely a year after a “historic” event was praised by both Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and BSF Director General ML Kumawat. In July 2009 the first batch of 178 women constables was inducted into the BSF to guard the international borders. Chidambaram called upon them to appreciate the “important role” they had to play.

omen constabulary for border guarding was a new idea to augment the force deployed on difﬁcult and hostile border. A 24x7 job, which needs a strong body and soul to perform but Sashastra Seema Bal has received this idea and opened its door for women to induct them as soldiers. Today Kanta, Kamla, Maria and Amina are the names of our soldiers deployed on the border outposts. The SSB has trained them in a way that they are discharging their duties at par with their male counterpart. Women may have gained entry into the army and paramilitary forces but the impression they are given in no uncertain terms by a majority of their male colleagues and superiors is that they are only “tolerated” there. While expediency and the need for political correctness ensure their presence in the forces, a deeply ingrained socio-cultural prejudice about their capacity for the job remains in these institutions. Women are inducted into the central paramilitary forces (CPMFs) with much fanfare, but it is overwhelmingly into the lower ranks. The report of the Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women (2010-11) on “Women in Paramilitary Forces” becomes signiﬁcant in this context. The report observes that there is an urgent need to

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

provide due representation to women in the paramilitary forces, that women are not given employment on compassionate grounds in these forces “on one or the other pretext” and that the Supreme Court’s guidelines on a special cell to prevent sexual harassment are not being scrupulously followed. It has “strongly” recommended that gender sensitisation programmes be made a mandatory part of the basic training syllabus.

Tolerated With Contempt

The debate over the ﬁtness of women to join defence and paramilitary forces has been a bitter one. These areas have been and continue to be seen as male domains where a woman’s presence upsets the well-ordered patriarchal applecart. Besides, by wanting to be in the war / combat arena which is naturally male, she is not adhering to her traditional feminine role. In a survey-interview of women in the paramilitary forces, published in Manushi (2003). Santosh Singh detailed the contempt with which they are treated (especially by their male seniors) and the resentment that their presence fosters among their male colleagues. Actually, the idea of inducting females for border guarding raised after deployment of SSB on Indo-Nepal border. This friendly border is open for the citizens of

The Union Public Service Commission’s notification that women officers will not be inducted into the SSB, ITBP and BSF came barely a year after a “historic” event was praised by both Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and BSF Director General ML Kumawat. In July 2009 the first batch of 178 women constables was inducted into the BSF to guard the international borders recruited 734 women during 2008 and became the ﬁrst border guarding force in the country to recruit women as a combat soldier. The recruited ladies were sent for the basic recruit training at SSB Training Centre Shamshi (Himachal Pradesh) for nine months. On completion of the training they were deployed in Battalion in 2009. This refers to the fact that the border-guarding forces are

SOMESH GOYAL IPS

The writer is an IPS ofﬁcer of 1984 batch allocated to Himachal Pradesh. He joined Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) on 9th February, 2012 on central deputation from HP Police as Inspector General (Pers). He has also worked as IG Ftr Hqrs, SSB Guwahati. He was also given the charge of IG (Spl Ops) at FHQ from 2nd January 2013 and recently, he has taken over the charge of Inspector General (O&I), FHQ, SSB on 08.04.2013. He is a trained Commando (Best Commando Trainee) and has worked with the Black Cats (National Security Guard). He has also worked in and trained Special Protection Group responsible for security of Prime Minister of India. He has been awarded President’s Police Medal for Distinguished services. He is also recipient of Kathin Sewa Medal and Indian Police Medal for Meritorious service. He is an alumnus of the prestigious National Defence College. Recently he has been awarded with DG’s Golden Disc on the occasion of 50th SSB Raising Day.

The official argument for the low percentage of women in the CPMFs and for assigning them only “soft” duties is that rough terrains and combat roles are an inconvenience to the women themselves. The more likely reason is that their deployment in those fields would require a deep-rooted change in the mindsets and attitudes of their male colleagues, juniors and seniors. This is a change that can come about only if the government gives importance to gender sensitisation programmes. So far, going by the notification issued by the UPSC, the government itself is in need of such a programme.

Initially there was a hitch among the ﬁeld commanders to assign them task of patrolling, naka, guarding the border posts, counter smuggling activities and they were asked to perform only frisking and search duties on the authorised routes but very soon the young ladies showed their skills and interest in other difﬁcult duties being performed by their male counterpart. Now they are independently managing the border outposts, performing daily patrolling duties in their area of

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

women in uniform INDIAN NAVY

SIGNIFICANT ROLE

EMPLOYABILITY OF WOMEN OFFICERS IN

INDIAN NAVY

W operation, laying nakas and getting success in seizure and apprehensions. The success rate of Mahila Jawans in preventing crime is very encouraging.

Sashastra Seema Bal has created a cordial and pragmatic atmosphere for these young ladies to grow their personality in all ways. They are achieving remarkable success in every ﬁeld like National and International sports, National level debate competitions and other operational activities ie Intelligence gathering, seizures, apprehensions etc. Ms Rani Singh, Ms Pallavi Dubey, Ms Poonam, Ms CN Gina Devi, Ms K Mandagni and Ms M Priya Devi are few name among them, who brought laurels for SSB by wining ﬁve Gold and Silver medals in World Police Games-2013.

SSB women contingents are participating in Republic Day Parade being organised by state governments every year and competing with their male counterparts from other CPMFs and army. It is very interesting that their enthusiasm, dedication, discipline placed them regularly in top three marching contingents since 2010.

Planned Recruitment

The government is planning to recruit 20,000 more armed women personnel in paramilitary forces in the next three years. According to the new plan formulated by the Home Ministry, all paramilitary forces – CRPF, BSF, CISF, ITBP, SSB and NSG – will essentially have 5 per cent of their total force strength as women personnel in three to ﬁve years and 10 per cent in the subsequent ﬁve years. These women will be hired and deployed for general guard duties, patrolling, frisking suspects and other normal policing activities undertaken by their male counterparts.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Subsequently, the government plans to enhance the facilities being offered to women security personnel. “We have to construct more barracks for women, toilets, crèche, daycare centres besides being more considerate in granting leave. We hope that in ten years, there will be generational shift in the paramilitary forces,” an ofﬁcial said.

The CRPF is the first central force to have given jobs to women personnel in its combat ranks. The force presently has two operational battalions (2,000 women) while the third (around 1,000 personnel) is being raised currently. The total strength of CRPF is about three lakh personnel, making it the country’s largest paramilitary force. The government has also agreed to induct the first batch of 650 women personnel in the BSF for border guarding duties. The BSF has more than two lakh personnel on its rolls. Other forces which have women in combat roles are the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), with about 800 women personnel and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) force with about 800 women combatants. The CISF has about 1,500 women on its rolls out of the total strength of two lakh personnel. Beginning with the mid-1980s, state governments as well as the centre found that they needed women to handle female participants in demonstrations and agitations. Thus it was that the first Mahila Battalion was raised in the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in 1986 followed by another in 1995. The government’s stated policy is to “gradually” move towards 10 per cent representation of women in the CPMFs by identifying more jobs that they can be assigned in the “given circumstances”.

For women officers in the Indian Navy the duties and job specifications, training, working conditions, promotion prospects, pay and allowances and service conditions of these officers are exactly the same as that of male officers and there is no gender discrimination whatsoever.

omen officers in the Navy (except in Medical and Dental branches) are inducted in the Logistics, Law, Observer, ATC, Naval Constructor and Education cadre / specialisation / Branch. Applications are invited from eligible candidates (both men and women) and the short-listed candidates are screened by the Services Selection Boards (SSBs). Qualified candidates are appointed in the navy as per their merit position vis-à-vis available vacancies. Women candidates compete with their male counterparts under a common selection process. Women officers are employed in navy based on their educational qualifications, courses qualified in the navy and suitability for a particular job, so as to best utilise their expertise in order to meet both individual aspirations as well as the expectations of the Service. The job profile for each Branch / cadre is enumerated in the succeeding paragraphs.

Logistics Duties. Women officers are inducted in Logistics cadre and employed for Financial Management, Material Management and Catering Management in shore establishments. The officers are responsible for management of funds and their optimal utilisation. The officers are also being trained and employed for infrastructure development related duties at Command Headquarters and unit level. The officers are being employed at Base Victualling Yards for management of Fresh and Dry provisions for ships and establishments. They are managing various contracts related to supply of items at IHQ MoD (N) and Command level. Women officers are also employed for instructional duties at INS Hamla for training of officers and sailors in Logistics and IT fields. The officers are being employed at Naval Pay Office with duties related to Pay and Allowances of Service personnel. Law Duties. The navy employs Women officers in Law

cadre with duties related to Judge Advocate which includes handling of court cases and litigations, their speedy disposal and rendering sound advice to authorities at IHQ MoD (N), Commands and unit level. The ofﬁcers also carry out liaison work with civil authorities and coordinate all activities for disposal of court cases.

Observer

Duties. Women officers inducted as Observers are employed for duties which include ground planning of operational missions like Search and Rescue (SAR), Surveillance, ASW search, Para-drop missions, Communication missions and fleet support missions. The officers are responsible for undertaking operational communication with various Maritime Operation Centres (MOCs) and fleet ships. They are trained to operate various sensors such as Radar, Sonar and Electro optical devices.

Air Traffic Control (ATC) Duties. ATC women officers are employed for duties of Air Traffic Controller at Naval Air Stations. The officers are trained to operate radar, homing

devices and radio communication systems. The officers undertake pre-flight briefing for aircrew on aspects of Air Traffic Control, Communication and dangers and restrictions. The navy has few dual use airfields for operation of naval and civil aircraft. The officers undertake control of military and civil aircraft at these dual use naval airfields. The officers are trained to control safety services at naval airfields such as Crash Fire Tenders, Specialist vehicles, Cranes, Recovery vehicles.

Naval Constructor Duties. Women ofﬁcers of Naval

Constructor specialisation are employed for duties related to designing of frontline warships in Naval Design organisations. They are actively involved in detailed design and layout of compartments which includes ergonomics, functional requirements and system layouts of the ship. These officers are employed at Naval Dockyards and associated with production floor and planning departments to ensure quality refits on time.

Education Duties. Women officers are being employed for Education duties which include instructional duties for officers and sailors at various training institutes such as Indian Naval Academy (INA), National Defence Academy (NDA) and various training schools of Indian Navy. They are also being employed for management of various Command Reference Libraries and unit Libraries. The officers are responsible for conduct of various examinations of officers and sailors including preparation and assessment of question papers. The officers contribute in management of Training Design and Evaluation at various training schools. They are actively employed in Information Technology (IT) and Information Warfare (IW) billets at various units. The officers are also employed as Headmasters and Registrars at Sainik Schools. The officers are also responsible for management of Naval Children schools and Kindergarten schools for naval children. Adventure Activities. Women officers are actively participating in sports and adventure activities. Women officers have been provided equal opportunity in Adventure activities such as Parachute Jumping, Ocean Sailing and White Water Rafting. One woman officer is presently participating in the Ocean sailing race onboard Mhadei from Cape Town to Rio de Janeiro. Women officers have been actively participating and leading Naval Marching contingent at Republic Day parade. Women officers are an integral part of the naval community and are second to none in any aspect, be it professionalism, sports, adventure or any other activity in the navy. (Courtesy The Indian Navy)

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

RAF

GENDER INTEGRATION AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

After induction in the RAF, women personnel undergo conversion training at RAF Academy of Public Order (RAPO), Meerut. This component includes rigorous

Women in RAF, while on familiarisation exercise (Famex) provide free medical check-ups at community levels, especially for women and children, provide advice and instruction on good health practices, go to local schools and civic events to promote public safety.

In policing, gender integration and the opportunity for women to participate eqally has been taken in the positive stride in the recent years. The public is, considerably more encouraging and frequently welcoming of their presence. Acceptance by the public has grown as women police have been seen more frequently in recent years on roads in uniform to contain various law and order problems.

n policing, gender integration and the opportunity for women to participate eqally has been taken in the positive stride in the recent years. The public is, considerably more encouraging and frequently welcoming of their presence. Acceptance by the public has grown as women police have been seen more frequently in recent years on roads in uniform to contain various law and order problems. India developed multifariously in almost every ﬁeld in the post independence era. Indian citizens are very conscious of the rights and privileges extended to them. A recourse to protests and agitations for their rights is no longer a surprise for the agencies handling law and order. A sudden increase in women’s involvement to all these aspects was a bolt from the blue for the law enforcing agencies. An evaluation of the situation revealed that agencies were insufﬁciently equipped to handle situations where women were aggressively playing a dominant role. With participation of women in politics and other important areas escalating, campaigns, demonstrations, protests, confrontation and crime committed by them turned out to be an acid test for the policemen in various states. They felt the complications of handling women agitators. With law and order being a state subject and sensing this acute emptiness, by the early eighties, people from all over the country started voicing their demand for inclusion of more and more women police in the forces to handle women confrontationists, agitators, protesters. Since the Central Reserve Police Force is an armed force of the Union of India, with the basic role of striking reserve to assist the State / Union Territories in Police operations to maintain law and order and contain insurgency and is also being used for various police duties in various states, the need to have women as a part of this force

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Besides, women police personnel as a part of Formed Police Units of Female (FFPU) are trained and equipped by RAF every year to go to Liberia under the aegis of UNMIL at Monrovia, where they assist Liberian National Police (LNP) in maintaining law and order, VIP security duties, raising awareness on sensitive issues such as mob violence and sexual and gender based violence, assist the LNP in recruitment drives, particularly reaching out to prospective female candidates and in providing medical check-ups for incoming recruits to the Liberian National Police.

could not have been overlooked. And with this intent, a number of women were inducted in the CRPF at senior and Junior ranks and now there are three full-fledged “mahila battalions” with women from various ranks and files posted all across the country, whether it is LWE, insurgency affected or law and order problem related areas. Representation of women in RAF, which is an integral unit of CRPF is also quite significant. RAF stands for “rapid action force”, a specialised force, raised by converting 10 unattached Battalions of CRPF in October 1992. These units were set up to deal with riots and riot like situations, to instill confidence amongst all sections of the society and also, handle internal security duty, emergent Law and Order duties, rescue and relief during disasters, first response, to render succour to the innocent persons ravaged by riots, raising awareness about communal forces amongst public and also undertake socially useful works for the benefit of community. RAF is a zero response force which gets to the crisis situation within a minimal time, thus enthuses an immediate sense of security and confidence amongst the general public. The smallest functional unit in the force is a ‘team’ commanded by an inspector, has three components namely riot control element, tear smoke element and fire element. It has been organised as an independent striking unit. One team in a company of RAF is comprised of women personnel so as to deal more effectively with situations where the force faces women demonstrators.

reluctant to trust men in uniforms, so the role of women police is essential for the law enforcement agencies in all similar situations. Thus, in the normal course, services of mahila elements are utilised in rendering ﬁrst aid to the injured, handling of traumatised riot victims mainly females and children and to assist in search of females.

Physical Training, Martial Arts / UAC, Weapon Training, Riot Control Drill, Riot Control Equipment handling, FAM-EX, Case Study, Yoga-Meditation, Human Rights, Fire Fighting, Rescue-Relief and First-Aid. Concurrently they acquire knowledge of various provisions of IPC, CrPC and other Acts related to law and order. While on call for duty, apart from providing support to local police force in management of law and order, especially where women and children are involved, Women in RAF are involved in conflict management, pacification and conciliation strategies also during crowd control. The growing emphasis on community policing demands police officers with problem-solving and communication skills that enable them to interact effectively with all segments of the public. It has been observed that women tend to be effective communicators and they are also good at solving problems. Women police in RAF play a critical role in addressing issues which affect women and children. Female victims are sometimes

Common experience of public and law enforcement agencies is that “Women trust female ofﬁcers’’ as police women can identify the main challenges and formulate workable solutions for the women in public and have been known to bring about notable changes in enhancing the image of police. Majority of women feel that Women in RAF respond effectively, rationally and show sympathy while tactfully handling women demonstrators. Thus there is a growing appreciation by the public for women in RAF in the law enforcement role. It is worth mentioning that most people are no longer skeptical of their ability to handle critical situations.

MALINI AGARWAL IPS

The writer belongs to the 1994 batch (48RR) of the Rajasthan Cadre. She is a Postgraduate and research scholar in Botanical sciences and Biotechnology from the University of Delhi. She has also served on deputation to the Ministry of Urban Development, Housing and Local Self-government, as Director (enforcement and vigilance) with Jaipur Development Authority and Jaipur Municipal Corporation. She has attended training courses abroad, viz Urban Planning for Sustainable development and Mass Rapid Transit System during Urban interactive mission to Europe at Leuven and Brussels (Belgium) and, Lille and Paris (France), the Course on professional Policing in UK and also The Euro-India summit at Halle, Germany. She has convened the “First National conference for Women in Police” in India at New Delhi Vigyan Bhawan. She has received Police Medal for Meritorious Service awarded on the occasion of Republic Day-2011, the Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award for outstanding public service at New Delhi in 2004 and won Nation level award for best practices and project in the urban transport under the category “Best commendable Emerging Initiative” given by Ministry of Urban Development, government of India. She joined in Central Reserve Police Force as Dy Inspector General of Police, Rapid Action Force on 25.04.2013.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

MYTH AND REALITY

NOWHERE ON THE FRONTLINES

THE TRUE PERSPECTIVE The role of army is totally different from Police or Paramilitary Forces (PMFs). The presence of a woman Platoon Commander in an isolated post of Kargil with almost 30 to 35 Jawans spending months together can be well appreciated. Eighty per cent of our Jawans and Junior Commissioned Officers (JCOs) come from rural background. The true reality of status of women in our rural areas is well known. Presently, therefore the acceptance of women as their leaders is still not the norm.

here has been a continuous debate about the role of women in the combat arms primarily restricted to Infantry / Mechanised Infantry, Armoured Corps and Artillery. The Armed Forces are the last bastion of our capabilities on national security. A number of committees have been set up in the past and the issue has also been deliberated in the Parliament. The matter is extremely sensitive and therefore needs to be given due thought and diligence before any decision is taken. The role of women in the armed forces deﬁnitely affects the ﬁghting potential of our combat troops and therefore, it cannot be a matter of ‘equality of sexes’. There is no victory or loss for anyone in the decisions that have been / will be taken. On this issue we need to ensure that any decision that is taken is in national interest and will not compromise army’s combat potential.

Historical Perspective

This article shall primarily discuss the employment of women officers in combat arms. The general belief by a number of experts on the issue is that army is deliberately resisting entry of women into the combat arms. Such a belief is farthest from the truth. Army has been more than willing to accept the women where they could be optimally utilised and where they could contribute to the overall fighting potential. Till 1992, women were commissioned only into the Medical and Dental Corps as doctors; in the Nursing Corps there were / are 100 per cent women. It was only in 1992 that women special entry scheme for 5 years was introduced for AEC, JAG, ASC and AOC. The Short Service later was extended by another five years. The entry was further expanded to include Engineers,

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Air Defence, Signals, EME and Intelligence corps. The Training period initially was restricted to 24 weeks as against 49 weeks for male officers in the Short Service. In 2006 the terms and conditions were revised for women officers also, at par with male Short Service Commissioned officers. The terms and conditions were further revised for women in 2008 ie 5+5+4 years and later 10+4 years of short service. The Permanent Commission was accepted to be granted to women officers in non-combat branches like Law (JAG) and Education (AEC). Presently, the percentage strength of women in the army is approximately 2.5 to 3 per cent, in medical corps 12 per cent and in Nursing Services 100 per cent.

Gender Bias Vs Real Issues

It needs to be stressed that there is no ‘gender bias’ or male chauvinistic attitude being displayed by the army. The issue has been deliberated, analysed and the recommendations / decisions are purely operational and in organisational / national interest. It would be pertinent to highlight certain facts which will bring in clarity to the issue at hand:  It is widely believed that women officers go through the same training and achieve the same standards. While, it is true that women undergo 49 weeks training at par with male officers, however the standards are different. The timing for completing a particular race distance are reduced so is the distance for women.  No women officers undergo training at National Defence Academy (NDA) or at Indian Military Academy (IMA).

 There are no women in the cadre for Jawans. There is also no demand for such entry from the society.  The intake into the army is largely from rural areas or small towns / cities. The status of women in such socio-economic environment is still evolving.  The role of army is totally different from Police or Paramilitary Forces (PMFs). The presence of a woman Platoon Commander in an isolated post of Kargil with almost 30 to 35 Jawans spending months together can be well appreciated.  There are biological issues which are gender speciﬁc and they do affect the combat effectiveness; long absence from duty cannot be accepted as it affects the operational preparedness. It is therefore, imperative that this issue is analysed in detail and not made an emotive issue to please a certain section of our society. National security is too sensitive an issue to be decided on emotions. Why the Indian Army today displays highest national spirit and always performs in national interests is because our ‘nation builders’ were conscious of the importance of this organisation that it should be totally insulated from all political interference. This was the primary reason why there is no reservation based on caste, creed, class or composition. Also the army has resisted any census based on such parameters. Maybe, in actuality, the composition of our armed forces is in conformity with the national diversity but actuals will never be known and should also not be known. This is our strength. The armed forces cannot compromise on merit. The best man must come and rise in the armed forces. If we interfere with ﬁghting potential, it will only be at national peril. There is therefore a need to tread with care.

There Can Be No Gender Bias

Army is one institution which does not permit any gender bias. However, where the ﬁghting potential of army / armed forces is concerned, there cannot be any compromise. We have to have the best / right man for the job. Women should not be inducted into the combat just to ensure that there is no gender bias; it would be preposterous. We can have more teachers, lecturers and professors in army schools, professional colleges to ensure more opportunities. You could have reservation for women

The general belief by a number of experts on the issue is that army is deliberately resisting entry of women into the combat arms. Such a belief is farthest from the truth. Army has been more than willing to accept the women where they could be optimally utilised and where they could contribute to the overall fighting potential

in IAS / IPS, PMF, Public Sector Enterprises, Kendriya Vidyalaya and many such organisations. However with army, there should be no pressure from any quarter to force decision-makers on this issue. It would only be disastrous. It would be pertinent to highlight that there are historical, sociological and physical disparities and these do affect the combat potential.

Command Requisite Of Army

Army is totally command oriented. Command is an extremely important function and therefore, a commander needs to be well accepted. Presently, our troops are not ready to accept such a change. Wherever, there is no command function required like Law (JAG) and AEC, permanent commission (PC) in the Services is already accepted. We may accept PC in some more services like postal, Intelligence (Language interpreter etc) Research (DRDO), MES, DGQA and the like. There cannot be any comparison with police and PMFs. Their role and tasks are different. Police has investigative, trafﬁc control, law and order and such like roles. PMFs can easily manage women in soft duties as there are a number of appointments which are not in face of combat. In case of army, regimentation is the prime parameter on which the unit performs, ﬁghts or perishes. Everyone has to perform equally; we cannot afford to have unequal linkages in the chain of functioning.

Foreign Armies

LT GEN VK CHATURVEDI PVSM, AVSM, SM (RETD)

The writer is an alumni of National Defence Academy and was commissioned into the Regiment of Artillery in June 1971. He fought the 1971 Indo-Pak War in Eastern Sector and was awarded the Sena Medal (Gallantry) for his act of gallantry while as a Forward Observation Ofﬁcer (FOO) he took over the command of the company when company commander was killed in action and he led the company to success. As Maj Gen (Ops/Trg) of Artillery he was responsible for the modernisation of Artillery. Later on promotion was the Director General Manpower Planning and Personnel Services of the Indian Army where he was responsible for the recruitment for the army. After retirement in May 2011, he is Advisor with the State Bank of India (Life) on Defence matters. A graduate of the prestigious National Defence College, contributes regularly to various seminars and workshops on strategic and security issues.

There seems to be an incorrect perception on women in combat in foreign armies. Nowhere, including Israel and US Armies, women are employed in combat. In Israel, despite the requirement of compulsory military job, the women are employed for 2 to 3 years at the age of 20 or so before marriage in combat support roles like Intelligence Corps, Signals, Engineers, Rocket Launcher operator or Border Guards. Women do not go in actual combat duties. Even in US the women are employed in such like duties only. It would be worthwhile, to highlight that despite such large scale deployment of US troops in Afghanistan, there has been no women casualty in combat in Afghanistan. The women casualties have been due to IED bursts, car bombs and helicopter crashes but not in the combat role. It must also be noted that women in Israel as well as US, are amongst all ranks and not restricted to ofﬁcer cadre alone. In some of the Scandinavian countries and few others where army is not involved with any conventional combat and

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

MYTH AND REALITY

Army is one institution which does not permit any gender bias. However, where the fighting potential of army / armed forces is concerned, there cannot be any compromise. We have to have the best / right man for the job. Women should not be inducted into the combat just to ensure that there is no gender bias; it would be preposterous. We can have more teachers, lecturers and professors in army schools, professional colleges to ensure more opportunities likelihood of such employment is also not foreseen, there are women in all cadres. But in these countries army is basically on policing jobs and therefore such examples cannot be the point of reference for us. European Union (EU) had to introduce “Sex Discrimination Act” to allow exclusion of women from combat units where, as per military judgment, employment of women would undermine combat effectiveness. The Act was upheld by European Courts in 1996. The UK study concluded that it was not only physical difference but adverse impact on unit cohesion due to presence of women in small groups (The way combat units operate) that was of signiﬁcance to not allow women in combat.

Shortage Of Ofﬁcers In Army

It is accepted that, presently there is approx 25 per cent deficiency of officers in the army; despite this shortage, the standards for selection have not been lowered, primarily because this is too sensitive an issue where chances cannot /should not be taken. We have, however taken a number of measures to make up the shortage of officers. A new Academy for pre-commission training has been established at Gaya. Strength of cadets for training has been enhanced. A number of measures to increase our intake in NCC as well as ‘in service’ entries have been taken. Also, action to improve reporting rate at Selection Boards have already been initiated. These have produced results and presently all the Academies are operating at their full capacity and in some cases above the capacity. It would be worthwhile mentioning that the numbers of applicants for various entries into the army are huge, however, due to our requirement of a right candidate the selection rate is only about 2 to 3 per cent. This stringent selection process should not be tampered with as we are playing with national security and even one or two incorrect decisions can bring in colossal harm and must, therefore, be avoided.

Another point on this is that, due to the pyramydical organisation of our army, the requirement of ofﬁcers at the younger service group (cutting edge; up to company commander’s level) is large, but thereafter, it reduces considerably and hence the requirement of the Short Service Commission where we have a large base, majority of which will leave after 14 years’ service and only a nucleus remains to rise up the ladder in the service.

Women Naxals

The employment of women in such operations is well appreciated. However it remains restricted to administrative / logistic tasks and not in leadership roles. There have been instances where women have been used as human shields / bombs. A carefully structured organisation cannot be expected to follow such an example.

Permanent Commission For Women

There is a demand amongst some of the women officers and the social organisations for Permanent Commission for the women. These are primarily based on self-interest for a better career. Probably these organisations do not know the intricacies of service of the army. The Indian Army is totally a command oriented army from a section commander to Platoon / Company / Battalion Commander right up to the Chief of Army Staff. A number of studies have been carried out and each has recommended that such a step is not in organisational interest and will impact combat effectiveness. However, wherever command of troops is not involved like Law (JAG) and Education (AEC) Permanent Commission has already been accepted. Probably at a later stage, based on the experience and feedback, the same may be extended for postal (APS), Intelligence Corps (purely Intelligence related jobs) DGQA, DRDO, MES etc. There are some biological and social issues related to women, which we need to consider. Due to the social requirement of raising of families, a woman is normally required to be away from duty for nearly 2 to 3 years for each child. The normal productive age is 25 to 35 years, which are the most crucial years from the operational point of view. With a standard two child norm a women officer physically remains inactive for a considerable time during critical years, which impacts combat effectiveness. The initial years of an officer in the army are with the troops. This is the period of ‘Tapasya’ where a young officer establishes himself as a leader of men by staying, eating, cooking and performing combat duties together.

He also leads them both physically and professionally. Therefore, you cannot be away from duty for long periods. This would not be possible in case of women officer and as such the camaraderie, combat effectiveness will suffer which cannot be operationally accepted. Eighty per cent of our Jawans and Junior Commissioned Officers (JCOs) come from rural background. The true reality of status of women in our rural areas is well known. Presently the acceptance of women as their leaders is still not the norm in rural India. There are exceptions in this field, however, these cannot be taken as rule. It should, therefore, be a very gradual process and no undue haste should be shown in this matter. It is still sometime that we accept such a change. Presently, not every duty is given to a women officer in the unit, eg checking of guards / picket at night to quote an example. Therefore, male officers have to bear additional duties which is not desirable. The army has no choice in public but to express happiness at the performance of women officer. Although, there is no doubt, the women officers have displayed high sense of discipline, commitment and dedication to the Service, yet there are problems of their safety and useful employment. Many duties, like deployment on isolated post / areas, night duties etc cannot be assigned to women officers, male officers have to bear the additional load which is resented. There is also a concern as in the Israeli Army, that soldier’s first instinct is to defend the women in their ranks rather than fight the enemy.

What Should Be Done

There is a strong case for looking after the Short Service Commissioned officer both women as well as men due to the peculiar requirement of service, where we need a very large base up to 14/15 years’ service and then the requirement peters out to maintain a young profile of the army for combat effectiveness. A number of committees have been set up to review the cadre management of Short Service officers. There is a definite need to look after the interest of these officers beyond their services in the army. These officers have given the most productive years of their life for the nation and nation owes it to them that these officers live a life of dignity beyond the army (armed force). Some of the incentives suggested are:  These officers be given full pension on completion of 14 years of service, which is proportionately reduced for 10 years of service. In case of Other Ranks (Jawans) the minimum service for pension is already 15 years; therefore, this can be easily modified to fulfill this criteria.  Lump sum grant of 2 months pay per year of service completed up to 10 years and thereafter 4 months pay up to 14 years of service to cater for immediate financial requirements post service in the army.  Professional Enhancement leave up to two years be given towards end of contractual period to prepare them for 2nd career; this may be proportionately reduced to one year if the officer serves for 10 years only. Expenditure on tuition / academic fee be met by the government up to a fixed limit.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

There are some biological and social issues related to women, which we need to consider. Due to the social requirement of raising of families, a woman is normally required to be away from duty for nearly 2 to 3 years for each child. The normal productive age is 25 to 35 years, which are the most crucial years from the operational point of view. With a standard two child norm a women officer physically remains inactive for a considerable time during critical years, which impacts combat effectiveness  Ex-Servicemen (ESM) status be given to all such officers after completion of 10 years of service or in case of disability even earlier.  Medical facilities be provided on graded scale through Employees Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS).  Re-employment be guaranteed to SSC officers, in PMFs, IAS/IPS, State services, PSUs and such other services. They are highly motivated, disciplined, competent and dedicated officers who will only contribute to nation building. The job offered must be Class I All India Service equivalent. There should be no attempt to undermine their status.  Lateral absorption of certain percentage of officers into PMFs / Police force, where their service in the army must be taken into account and seniority restored accordingly.  Relaxation in civil service examination in terms of number of subjects in written examination. This has happened in the past and such officers have done the country proud and number of them have risen to become Secretary to the government of India.

Conclusion

It must be noted that primary objective of our armed forces is National Security. There are no short cuts accepted in fulfilling this objective. Any decision taken based on factors other than professional will have far reaching effect on the combat effectiveness of the armed forces and therefore, must be a well analysed and considered decision. We now have an adequate experience of almost 20 years; also we have the experience of US Army which has been continuously involved in combat for last 10 to 12 years. Number of sexual harassment cases, ‘command rape’ phenomenon etc and its actual impact on combat effectiveness also must be considered before any decision is taken. It is not a case of gender equality but is far beyond it. Any decision taken must be implemented in a gradual manner over a period of 10 to 15 years. It should be a slow transformation and we must not be in a hurry to do it within a short time. Tendency for self-glorification that it was done during ‘my tenure’ must be curbed ruthlessly. It is too sensitive and operationally critical issue to be treated as such. The decision taken as a matter of political and populist expediency can prove disastrous in the long run and must be avoided. There is no one who is not in favour of giving rightful place to our women, may be army is more for it, but, in this case the issue is of the right man for the job and that precisely was in the minds of our forefathers who have ensured no reservation in the armed forces, yet you find the real / true India represented in our armed forces, I am sure the decision-makers will take the right decision in national interest.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

INTERVIEW

Col Ingrid Gjerde

AN EVENTFUL AND INSPIRING JOURNEY

DSA readers around the world the contours and highlights of your eventful and inspiring journey in the armed forces? Col Ingrid Gjerde: I have appreciated most positions throughout my career and there are several highlights. I would point out my time as a rifle platoon commander in UNIFIL in South Lebanon in 1995. I was responsible for patrolling, check-points and an Observation Post in a small Lebanese village. Furthermore, I will mention my time as a rifle company commander in Bosnia in 1998-99. As the operational reserve for the NATO commander (COM SFOR), I had many interesting tasks all over Bosnia. Another highlight is my time as a battalion commander of His Majesty the King’s Guard, an infantry battalion with a special mission and first class soldiers. I also have to mention my last operation abroad as the National Contingent Commander in Afghanistan. Demanding tasks for the Norwegian forces and great challenges for the Afghan population. DSA: How has been your experience as a female officer especially in combat theatres and submarines in Norway as well as in other international operations?

olonel Ingrid Gjerde is Commandant Norwegian Army Military Academy at Oslo, Norway. She has a masters in political science from the University of Oslo and has had military education at Army Military Academy Norway, US Army Command and General Staff College and US War College. She has been Advisor Strategic Communications, Norwegian MoD; Norwegian Contingent Commander, Afghanistan and Long-term Planner Norwegian MoD. In this interesting interview she fondly reminisces about her eventful and inspiring journey as a woman in uniform.

Defence and Security Alert: Team DSA salutes your courage and determination to join the Norwegian Army and becoming the highest ranking female infantry ofﬁcer. Please share with

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Col Gjerde: I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to command for several years. I enjoy the challenges and I always have felt that both superiors and subordinates have appreciated me for the job I have done. As a commander, I have been able to work very independently and see the results of the effort of my units. Now and then, I have missed having more women around, even if I have always been treated well by my fellow soldiers. In an egalitarian society as Norway, I think most men do respect you as a woman and care more about how you do your job than your gender. I do get some extra attention, in particular from foreigners abroad, but it has never caused any major problems. Even in negotiations with men from very different cultures than the Norwegian, I have felt they have treated me with respect. However, I do know sisters in arms, who have met more challenges than I have. Continuously, we have to pay attention to leadership and culture, to make sure we treat each other with respect.

In Norway, all military positions have been open to women since 1984 and I do not think many question this as long as the women hold the same standards as our male colleagues. DSA: You were commander of Norwegian forces in Afghanistan. How do you compare your stint in Afghanistan with your other assignments?

think women are a little more reluctant when it comes to use of violence. An increased share might contribute to more attention to other solutions than violence. When that is said, I do think the use of military power is required to solve some conflicts, as the last resort. Furthermore, I think most male officers do try to avoid the use of military power if there are other options. This is an important part of our education and training. There are also other reasons for recruiting more women. We need the best and brightest and I do believe about half of them are women. I also believe that mixed organisations are better off when it comes to come up with innovative solutions, because issues are seen from different angles. And, finally, in operations it is always important to build trust and receive information from the local population. With women in our units, we see that we more easily can deal with the female part of the population.

Yes, I think more women in security forces would contribute to a more peaceful world. In general, I do think women are a little more reluctant when it comes to use of violence. An increased share might contribute to more attention to other solutions than violence. When that is said, I do think the use of military power is required to solve some conflicts, as the last resort. Furthermore, I think most male officers do try to avoid the use of military power if there are other options.

Col Gjerde: My position as the National Contingent Commander in Afghanistan was special compared to my other command tasks. I had to deal with everything from personnel matters, operations on the ground, logistics and high politics. I learned a lot about Afghanistan; culture, history, politics and people. And, I dealt with lots of interesting people both from Afghanistan and the international political and military society operating in the region. One day I would be patrolling in the mountains with a unit from the Norwegian Provincial Reconstruction Team, the next I would sit around the table with the Norwegian Secretary of Defence and the Commander of the International Stabilisation Force (COM ISAF), and another day I would enjoy an Afghan meal with some local women. Great variation and an extremely interesting experience.

DSA: Roughly half of human population is women. Do you think if more and more women join defence and security forces, this will contribute to a more peaceful world? Col Gjerde: Yes, I think more women in security forces would contribute to a more peaceful world. In general, I do

DSA: In the light of the present state of the world, the security environment and the status of women, what is your message that can inspire and empower women in India and all over the world? Col Gjerde: I encourage women to choose a career in the security forces and the security forces to recruit and keep more women. Women are important for operational effectiveness, because we bring something extra to the table. I am thankful for the great opportunities I have been given and I want every young women to be able to make her choices and make the career she wants.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

BSF

Armed with the Supreme Court’s Vishakha guidelines to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace and an active philosophy of gender neutrality, the Border Security Force has improved the numbers of its women cadres and raised the seniority level to Assistant Commandants, opening avenues for women to the highest echelons of command and control.

t was Pakistan’s attempt to create a diversion in the Rann of Kutch area in the south-western sector of the International Border in Gujarat and a simultaneous main military thrust into Jammu and Kashmir (Operation Gibraltar) through covert inﬁltration of its armed forces disguised as civilians in the 1965 War that forced India to create a paramilitary force for the day-to-day management, surveillance and protection of its borders with Pakistan.

Birth Of The BSF

Under the guidance of Mr KF Rustamji best known for his anti-dacoity operations in the rivines of Chambal in Madhya Pradesh, the Border Security Force came into being. It was trained for military operations and was armed to a large extent with weapons similar to the Indian Army within the small arms category. It also had a police orientation to counter smuggling and transborder crimes. It was raised on 1st December, 1965 to safeguard the border with Pakistan in the west and East Pakistan in the east. Given the determined manner in which Pakistan sought to undermine the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a uniﬁed India it became clear that there needed to be an improvement in the facilities available for border management. The porosity of the borders allowed easy transit of people from all around its periphery seeking better opportunities within a resurgent India. Even while there were many innocent persons seeking better livelihood who crossed over to India there was also, concurrently, an ofﬁcial conspiracy by China in the North-east and Pakistan to stoke insurgencies with safe havens in East Pakistan and Myanmar and Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir and constant stream of smugglers, gunrunners and drug peddlers and terrorists were unleashed into India. Over the years a strategic consensus emerged that advocated a barbedwire-and-road arrangement which would be patrolled by the Border Security Force. But it took many years for the project to fructify along the India-Pakistan border from Gujarat in the south to

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

BSF personnel guarding Indian border Jammu and Kashmir in the north. Though much work has been done along the border with the former East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) there are still gaps through which nefarious activities continue. The need for such a fence was underscored when the east wing of Pakistan became convulsed in a political struggle after the Bengali Awami League led by Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, father of current Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed won a majority of seats in the National Assembly but West Pakistan politicians led by Zulﬁkar Ali Bhutto and the Pakistani military establishment refused to honour the peoples’ verdict. The Pakistan Army was involved in a series

of massacres and atrocities against the Bengalis forcing more than ten million to ﬂee to neighbouring Indian states of West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura. India supported the indigenous Bengali Mukti Bahini in its war against the Pakistan occupation forces. Believing in the doctrine that the “defence of East Pakistan lies in the west”, the Pakistan military establishment launched a widespread attack on nine Indian airbases along the Indo-Pak border as well as Agra. India retaliated the next day on 4 December with counter air attacks as deep as Sargodha near Peshawar

in the North West Frontier Province (now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and with a night raid by the Indian Navy on Pakistan’s economic hub, Karachi (now celebrated as Navy Day). Heavy ﬁghting took place all along the western sector with major tank operations in the Samba sector of Punjab as well as in Barmer in Rajasthan where the Pakistanis attacked the Longewala post that was manned by a mixed group of the Indian Army and the Border Security Force. (It needs to be recalled that the Border Security Force is deployed as the ﬁrst echelon of defence all along the western border and it was from behind this shield that the Indian Army was deployed

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

BSF

All land based variants of Agni are rail and road mobile, thereby increasing survivability. Therefore, testing of these missiles must be accompanied by other steps necessary to cover the existing inadequacies in India’s roads, bridges and rail infrastructure to support a missile like Agni V which will weigh 50 tonnes in defensive and offensive operations according to the strategy and tactics evolved by Army Headquarters. There was always a group of senior BSF personnel at every forward post to liaison with the army and explain the lay of the land and revert to a paramilitary and policing role in areas behind Indian lines.)

Static Defences

With the instigation of Sikh militancy in Punjab by a Pakistan bent on avenging the 1971 division of the country there was a felt need to accelerate the barbedwire fence static defence line. It created problems for Indian farmers with land along the border and the use of women by Pakistan to smuggle fake Indian currency notes (FICN), narcotics and weapons into India with the intention of destabilising it. There was a requirement for women in uniform to perform frisking and search and to interrogate women criminals. The women’s wing of the Border Security Force – Constable General Duty (Mahila) – was created in 1972 and they were inducted into the health services. Ministerial staff cadre was inducted in 1993. The induction was based on a policy of mixed direct recruitment and compassionate appointment of widows or children of BSF personnel who were killed or died on duty or were declared medically disabled. Once the border fence came up it became necessary to create gates to allow Indian farmers and their womenfolk to gain access to their lands for cultivation

and harvesting. Over time, crossing points began to be used by Pakistan to send across fake Indian currency notes, drugs and weapons not just on the western sector in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat but through Bangladesh as well using old Pakistan Army Inter-Services Intelligence connections to keep India under a constant state of destabilisation. In 2008 it was decided to induct women into the combat role which included all activity in which men too were deployed. The concept of gender equality entailed a revolutionary change in mindsets among both men and women cadres. The application of Constitutional provisions for the empowerment of women and implementing in letter and spirit of the National Policy for Empowerment of Women among the goals of which are to ensure that there is de jure and de facto enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedom by women on equal basis with men in all spheres – political, economic, social, cultural and civil and to this it could now be added the security apparatus in the country. Equal access to participation and decision-making of women; strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination of all forms of discrimination against women; changing societal attitudes and community practices by active participation and involvement of both men and women; strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination of all forms of discrimination against women; changing societal attitudes and community practices by active participation and involvement of both men and women; and mainstreaming a gender perspective in the development process.

Integrated Personnel Policy

A very conscious effort is underway in the Border Security Force to implement and integrate these basic Constitutional features into the day-to-day functioning of this paramilitary organistion. Within its work culture where men and women do similar duties it is now seen

that women are fully involved in guard and security duties from the border outposts to the organisation’s involvement in counter-insurgency cordon-and-search operations; control of women agitators; frisking and questioning of women; and intelligence gathering in the combat operational segment of its responsibilities. Their role in the provision of medical attention as doctors and nurses is usually taken for granted but they also play a crucial physical and psychological part in relief and rescue operations during communal and natural calamities. In addition to the normal measures to ensure gender equality the BSF has tried to be responsive to the special needs of its women cadres by ensuring convenient post where feasible. Married women are generally deployed in the same station as their husbands and separate accommodation and basic amenities like toilets and separate barracks, mobile toilets at place of duty have been provided. It is a measure of good working practice that the administration has made it a point not to allow women to be deployed singly in any situation whether indoors or during patrol duties. They operate in pairs in what is known as a “buddy system” which has a salutary effect in both operational as well as administrative / ministerial situations. The current strength of women in the Border Security Force has been given as 2,517 divided into the General Duty (Mahila) personnel of which there are 1,717 inclusive of 34 Sub Inspectors; 375 Ministerial Staff; 370 Medical Staff; 30 Civil Staff and 28 other combatants. As part of the “equal opportunity” philosophy the BSF has decided to incorporate additional appointments in the rank of direct entry Assistant Commandants after upgrading posts to Sub Inspector level in 2010. The new cadre will become operational by 2015-2016 after completion of recruitment formalities and undergoing a 50 week basic training course at the BSF Academy at

Tekanpur in Gwalior. They will be inducted into the Company and Battalion echelons to bolster command and control over women and men combatants. To maintain their physical, mental and emotional robustness, in all spheres including Combat Role, BSF is gender sensitising the force to make sure that the transition from civilian mores and practices where discrimination is rampant is shed in their new workplace regime. Equal promotional and deputation avenues at par with male candidates are available. With induction of women as AC (DE), women can aspire to man BSF formations from constable to the highest level. Efforts are underway to introduce a separate transfer policy for women cadre to ease problems related to marriage and other social and family responsibilities.

Virus Of Sexual Harassment

The Border Security Force has taken active steps to ensure that there is no complaint of sexual harassment and committees have been set up as per the Supreme Court’s Vishakha guidelines to tackle the tendency swiftly and appropriately. In order to comply with the guidelines of the 1997 Supreme Court judgement detailed instructions to all BSF establishments with regard to dealing the cases of sexual harassment of working women and to create awareness in this regard has been issued. BSF have also constituted Complaints Committee headed by a woman at each HQr / Establishment to enquire into the complaints of sexual harassment. A representative of NGO dealing with issues relating to women has been associated in each of the Complaints Committee so constituted. Other grievances of women staff are dealt with during roll calls every morning and sainik sammelans as well. To ensure that women are not caught up in the stress and strain of juggling career and homemaking the BSF is expanding its daycare and crèche facilities from the current six to sixty and has moved the Home Ministry for funds, appropriate staff and equipment for the purpose. Currently crèches are available only in Jammu and Akhnoor in Jammu and Kashmir, in Jalandhar in Punjab, Umpling in the North-east and Indore in central India.

New Weaponry

For those caught up in the debate about women in combat situations here is food for thought. On the 48th BSF Day celebrations held at the Chhawla Camp near Delhi on 1st December 2013 the Mahila contingent was armed with the latest Italian Baretta semi-automatic carbines and Israeli X95 assault rifles. The former can be quickly converted for use by left-handed or right-handed shooters (ambidextrous) and has a receptacle for red dot and infrared and night vision sights. The latter uses both 5.56 mm and 9 mm calibre bullets fired through one weapon. The interchangeability can be done with a silencer for all calibres, thus distinguishing itself as the ideal weapon for special operations requiring stealth and camouflage and an assurance that the enemy cannot find the direction from which the shots are fired. (Courtesy Border Security Force)

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

CHANGING MINDSETS having women in actual combat in the Israeli Army was less effective as compared to all male combat units. Men feared losing women to the enemies and protecting them within the combat unit became their top priority. There were also other issues such as low level of privacy, sexual undercurrents and moral and psychological wellness issues when living under stress in close proximity at remote locations. In the US, women however serve on submarines, as marine commandos and also fly fighter planes. Women also serve as fighter pilots in many other countries of the world, which among others include US, Norway, Canada, China, Germany and Pakistan.

Indian Perspective

THE INDIAN PERSPECTIVE

In March 2010, acting on petitions filed by women officers serving in the armed forces demanding gender equality, the Delhi High Court directed the government to grant Permanent Commission to 50 serving women. It was in 2009 that the first batch of women battalion of the BSF was deployed along the Indo-Pak border. It is heartening to see that government policies in recent times have opened up to encourage capable women to be part of this dynamic work force.

arring a few exceptions, traditionally, women the world over have hardly ventured into the battlefield. Their roles were defined and moulds were created to fit in snugly. Modern times however, have opened up an avenue of opportunities, one such being a career in the armed forces. In countries such as US, Canada, Australia and Britain, sizeable numbers of women serve in many branches of the armed forces and women have risen to senior ranks in the military. But despite striving to maintain equality of sexes, the armed forces have been a domain of work where, due to a number of reasons and past experiences, the kind of roles that women perform as part of military duties has been debated. Women, who constitute

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

nearly 15 per cent of the US Armed Forces, participated actively in the Iraq War. They however, were not assigned direct combat roles but ‘combat support’ roles.

A Mindset Melting Away

The US has currently adopted a policy that nations such as Australia, Canada, Denmark and France among others have been front-runners at − opening ‘close combat roles’ to women. On January 23, 2013, when the US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta removed the US military's ban on women serving in combat, it drew many strong opinions from the American public. Doubts and concerns were mostly based on experiences of the Arab-Israeli War in 1948, when

Women were first inducted in the Military Nursing Service in 1927 and in the Medical Officers Cadre since 1943. It was in 1992 that women officers were first inducted in the regular armed forces. While in developed countries women serve in all ranks of the regular armed forces, in India, women serve only in the officer cadre.

Army Service Corps, Intelligence and Judge Advocate General branches. In the navy, they serve in the Logistics, Education, Judge Advocate General, Observer, Air Traffic Controller and Naval Constructor branches. In the air force, they serve in Flying (transport aircraft and helicopters), Technical and Administration branches. Women officers are inducted in CAPT various branches of the armed forces SAJITA NAIR (RETD) not based on a separate sanctioned The writer was strength but entirely on merit, which commissioned in the implies induction of individuals Army Ordnance Corps in based on their physical fitness, 1994. Post her tenure in mental capability and aptitude for the army, she has been work. This policy ensures that the an HR professional and coveted stars and stripes adorn the author. Her debut novel uniforms of those who deserve it, titled She’s a Jolly Good irrespective of gender. Another Fellow, about women recent development in this direction offi cers in the Indian has been induction of women as Army, was published by officers in the rank of Assistant Hachette India in 2010. Commandants in the Border Security Force. It was in 2009 that the first batch of women battalion of the BSF was deployed along the Indo-Pak border. With over 700 women serving in the ranks in the BSF, the government has now begun to induct women in the officer cadre to command their troops.

Currently 1,214 women officers serve in the army (3.3 per cent), 302 in the navy (3.9 per cent) and 1,079 in the air force (10.4 per cent). These figures exclude women serving in the medical stream. Earlier, women officers could serve for a period of five to ten years extendable to a maximum of 14 years. However, in March 2010, acting on petitions filed by women officers serving in the armed forces demanding gender equality, the Delhi High Court directed the government to grant Permanent Commission to 50 serving women. Presently, Permanent Commission is offered to Judge Advocate General and Army Education Continuing Challenges Corps in the army, Accounts Branch of the air force and Naval In a patriarchal structured society such as India, women in Constructor in the navy. A Permanent Commission would the armed forces have a much lower level of acceptance in enable these women to draw pension after a service of 20 years comparison to their counterparts in developed countries. Although women have been serving and also rise to senior ranks. However, The intake of women in non-combat in the regular Indian armed forces this has caused disparagement roles however, has risen progressively for more than two decades now, they among women officers serving in the do not form a sizeable part of the other branches as their services are through the years. Women officers organisation nor have they risen to terminated after the 14-year period. are inducted in various branches positions where they can influence Many petitions by serving and of the armed forces not based on a policies and decisions. When they retired lady officers are still awaiting separate sanctioned strength but were first inducted, doubts were decisions in courts on this account. entirely on merit, which implies raised about their acceptance by Considering the nature of work induction of individuals based on their male troops who came from rural in the support arms, they reiterate physical fitness, mental capability backgrounds. Their capability their right to be given the option for and aptitude for work as effective military leaders was Permanent Commission. also questioned. This however, Still In Denial has not deterred the spirit of the Studies carried out by the Headquarters Integrated Defence Indian woman in uniform. Through the years, women have Staff in 2006 and High Level Tri-Services Committee in worked with distinction, commanding troops, living in field 2011 do not recommend women in combat roles in India. conditions, handling all types of weapons and overcoming Women are not inducted into combat duties in the army, challenges coming their way. fighter pilots in the air force or on submarines in the navy. Women also do not serve on ships afloat, although when It is heartening to see that government policies in recent women were first inducted in the navy, they performed times have opened up to encourage capable women to these duties. Lack of infrastructure, low men to women ratio be part of this dynamic work force. Changing mindsets and living in close proximity led the navy to decide against have helped increase the number of women in these this role for its women officers. The intake of women in traditionally male dominated work places. It won’t be non-combat roles however, has risen progressively through long before India, like many other countries of the world, the years. In the army, women serve in the Electronics and will have a confident young lady Flight Lieutenant in her Mechanical Engineers, Signals, Engineers, Army Education Sukhoi-30 MKI, zipping through the skies, breaking not Corps, Army Ordnance Corps, Army Aviation, Air Defence, just the sound but every other barrier.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

CISF 24x7 helpline, CISF has gone a long way in protecting its fair sex passengers.

The professionalism and commitment of the force is evident from the way it has adapted itself to respond to the dynamic security environment in the country. It has displayed a great balance between implementing the highest level of uncompromising security and courteous behaviour in public interface.

women possess to a considerable degree. Taking this cue, the CISF marched ahead with the ﬁrst women contingent in 1987 at Recruit Training Centre, Barwaha (MP).

Gender Security

CISF is the only Central Armed Police Force to have public

The concept of equality and diversity helped our organisation to work more creatively and innovatively and improve performance. A diverse workforce and a commitment to positive action and promoting equality and diversity, delivers a range of beneﬁts which all contribute towards improving the organisation’s performance.

Increasing Numbers

ISF has carved out a niche for itself in the ﬁeld of security. With a strength of one lakh thirtyseven thousand personnel on its roll today, CISF is currently providing security cover to nuclear installations, space establishments, airports, seaports, power, coal, oil and steel sectors, sensitive government buildings, Delhi Metro rail, disaster management, VIP security, heritage monuments / places, private establishments, Embassies abroad and the force has been able to ensure and provide a safe and secure environment wherever it is deployed. This has been our humble but signiﬁcant contribution to the progress of the country.

Adapting To Dynamic Conditions

The force has also exhibited its professional excellence and commendable versatility during its deployment for election duties, internal security assignments, making remarkable contribution towards generating security consciousness in society. The professionalism and commitment of the force is evident from the way it has adapted itself to respond to the dynamic security environment in the country. It has displayed a great balance between implementing

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

the highest level of uncompromising security and courteous behaviour in public interface. Maintenance of peaceful environment is a necessary prerequisite for achieving better growth in any organisation where CISF is providing security. Though scientific and technological developments have evolved various techniques as safeguards against sabotage and accidents in industrial production the significant role played by CISF in providing security to the employees and executives is of great importance today. Physical strength, fearlessness and aggressiveness are portrayed as the qualities displayed by the ideal officer in an armed force. Overlooked are the many other qualities needed to carry out the task successfully. These include patience, compromise, empathy and diplomacy all qualities that

Physical strength, fearlessness and aggressiveness are portrayed as the qualities displayed by the ideal officer in an armed force. Overlooked are the many other qualities needed to carry out the task successfully. These include patience, compromise, empathy and diplomacy all qualities that women possess to a considerable degree interface where fair sex constitute half of the population. Having largest strength of women in its rank and file in percentage compared to military or paramilitary forces of India, today women in CISF make their presence felt thus encouraging more women to access its services without inhibition, which is serving as precursor to many other outcomes. For example, in Delhi Metro, CISF has taken a lot of new initiatives to instill a sense of confidence amongst women commuters by deploying lady officers, sub officers and women quick reaction teams (QRTs) equipped with sophisticated weapons. With the introduction of enhanced CCTV surveillance and a

Hazardous working conditions, difficult isolated places of posting in far flung areas, better job opportunities elsewhere are the challenges for women to join forces. However, the representation has increased over the years as per the Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women which regularly monitors the status of representation and working conditions of women in CAPFs. The world around us is changing and policing has to respond and adapt to those changes to continue to protect society and provide high quality services that meet the different needs of all our communities. It has made significant progress in delivering real improvements in equality and diversity. It remains committed to providing services that respond to the needs of different communities. The women in CISF have great potential to tone down, defuse and de-escalate any crisis situations. In their non-combative role requiring restraint, patience and endurance, they are being gainfully employed to serve as effective agents of change.

DINAVAHI SHYAMALA

The writer is presently holding the post of Assistant Inspector General / Pers in CISF HQrs, New Delhi. She did her MSc in Botany from Osmania University with distinction in the year 1986, Diploma in HR Management and French Language. She joined CISF as Assistant Commandant through Civil Services Examination-1991. She held various significant posts in CISF while posted at Chennai Port, Bhilai Steel Plant, Visakhapatnam Port and Airport etc. She ensured flawless security measures and controlled the crime in a befitting manner. She worked on UN Mission and served as Civ-Pol in Kosovo in the year 2002-03. She is the recipient of two starred DG’s disc. In her 20 years of service, she earned more than 30 appreciations / commendations from various national and international authorities. She has written many articles in the field of security and other subjects.

As peacekeeping has evolved to encompass a broader humanitarian approach, CISF women have become increasingly part of UN peacekeeping family in various countries and they act as role models in the local environment, inspiring women and girls in often male dominated societies to push for their own rights and for participation in peace processes. As members of the organisation, we individually and collectively strive to constantly update our knowledge, skills and attitude in response to the limitless array of potential challenges that lie ahead of us.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

HINDSIGHT AND FORESIGHT

UNTAPPED TALENT AND

POTENTIAL In the field of internal security, the central paramilitary forces (CPMFs) discharged significantly their responsibility and in this process pioneered the employment of women in combat and non-combat roles including clerical, medical and miscellaneous duties. Most of senior members of the CPMFs interviewed were unanimous in their assessment that the experience of Mahila troops has been satisfactory so far especially given the different socio-cultural milieu and backgrounds.

n India, national security presently is understood in narrow military terms rather than in a larger and comprehensive manner. National security therefore has been a responsibility of the central government and has remained so since Independence. Defence of the international border and internal security has been the primary focus of the central government wherein the military’s role was well deﬁned and suitably developed. Mrs Indira Gandhi changed the contours in 1968 by making sweeping changes to the national security infrastructure by creating a specialised intelligence agency to deal with all aspects of India’s external security. This was the beginning of a new era in securing India’s inﬂuence and interests in foreign capitals especially in its neighbourhood and in areas where intervention was felt necessary.

Indira Gandhi’s Reforms

The infrastructure created by Mrs Gandhi has undergone several major changes in keeping with the changing political landscape both national and international. This however underlined the need to move away from the

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

existing sectoral approach to national security issues and developing understanding, creating synergies, expertise and technologies that contribute towards a holistic approach to threats and challenges. It is also not possible for one entity or few entities to deal with future issues in a “stand alone” situation. In the backdrop of major developments, national security has acquired wider perspective, where the government of the day has to work harder to ensure safety and well-being of its citizens. The ambit has increased manifold. Each individual has become an important stakeholder and equally responsible for it. The role of women in defence and security management has unfortunately remained limited to certain spheres so far. Time has become appropriate to break the glass ceiling and harness the untapped talent and potential of women in matters of security and defence either directly or in several other ways. In the ﬁeld of internal security, the central paramilitary forces (CPMFs) discharged signiﬁcantly their responsibility and in this process pioneered the employment of women

in combat and non-combat roles including clerical, medical and miscellaneous duties. The credit goes to the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) for the pathbreaking reforms, which are being followed by its sister organisations namely, the Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), National Security Guard (NSG) and Assam Riﬂes (AR). The SSB of course is a newcomer to the central paramilitary force fraternity though it came into existence in the early sixties.

Small Per Cent Of Security Forces

According to a CISF veteran, there are currently over 15,071 combatant women in the CPMFs with the bulk in the CRPF – 5,414 (35.9 per cent), followed by 4,815 (31.9 per cent) in the CISF, 1,648 in BSF, 1,289 in Railway Protection Force (RPF), 1,126 in SSB, while ITBP and Assam Riﬂes have 780 and 89 respectively. The lowest is in the NSG with 41. The overall picture is far from satisfactory given the enormous strength of the CPMFs. There is some good news. The BSF has developed an ambitious programme towards induction of more women into its ranks. Director-General, Border Security Force, Subash Joshi in an interview to a leading defence magazine DSA in September 2013 had revealed plans to recruit 5,000 more women constables in the period 2013-2015. According to him, presently there are 1,648 women constables and 18 Sub-inspectors in the force. Considering that the BSF is adding 46 additional battalions to its strength by assuming border guard duties along the India-Myanmar border, the need for more women personnel, all ranks, will become an operational necessity, including a large body of Platoon Commanders (Direct Entry), Company Commanders or Assistant Commandants (Direct Entry). The Heads of other CPMFs too have revealed ambitious expansion plans.

In the field of internal security, the central paramilitary forces (CPMFs) discharged significantly their responsibility and in this process pioneered the employment of women in combat and non-combat roles including clerical, medical and miscellaneous duties Satisfactory Performance

Most of senior members of the CPMFs interviewed were unanimous in their assessment that the experience of Mahila troops has been satisfactory so far especially given the different socio-cultural milieu and backgrounds. Importantly, female members of the CPMFs have given a good account of themselves in combat situation, wherever they are deployed. The sight of young BSF Mahila troopers at the Attari-Wagah Beating the Retreat ceremony is already world famous and has become an effective poster for more youth to join in their wake. This therefore creates a groundswell in favour of recruitment of greater number of women in the central forces. The CISF, by virtue of greater visibility, too has an impressive image given its deployment at national and international airports. In fact, as the task and role of each organisation becomes complex in meeting future challenges, there is a growing

need to look at force multipliers in this direction. The next generation of security forces will have to depend on technology in a graduated manner. The recruitment of more women at the direct entry levels to posts of Platoon Commander and Company Commander especially for Technical trades such as Intelligence analysts, risk and threat assessments, cryptography, Information Technology, specialisation in communications including monitoring and cyber operations is lacking. If they are inducted into the above posts, the CPMFs will create a huge trained manpower base in terms of research, analysis and assessments thus adding to their operational efﬁciency. The current method of recruitment and training of such specialists has to undergo a makeover to attract talents suitable for the tasks ahead. Campus recruitment is also an attractive option. Justice Verma had advocated allocation of more posts for women in police and his view was echoed by the Parliamentary committee on “empowerment of women” which recommended that representation of women in the police force should be increased to 33 per cent.

Internal Combat Zones

PM HEBLIKAR

The writer is Managing Trustee, Institute of Contemporary Studies Bangalore (ICSB). He is a Visiting Professor at the Department of International Relations and Strategic Studies, Manipal University, Manipal (Karnataka). He is an Adjunct Faculty at National Institute of Advance Studies (NIAS) Bangalore. He retired as Special Secretary to Government of India in September 2010. He was twice decorated by the Government for Meritorious and Distinguished service besides other commendations. He specialised in insurgency and counter-insurgency developments in India’s north-east region and its external ramiﬁcations. His areas of interest included developments in South Asia, South East Asia, Africa and India’s national security.

I wish to highlight the role of the CRPF, which raised the First Mahila Battalion on February 7, 1986 with considerable care and caution under the leadership of its first Commandant, Mr SS Khan. Today, the force has three Mahila Battalions on its rolls and a fourth one is currently under raising. In addition, each of the 10 Rapid Action Force (RAF) battalions has a team of 90 lady constables. A former CRPF cadre officer, who retired as Inspector General recently, mentioned that CRPF Mahila companies are deployed in internal security and counter insurgency duties in Jammu and Kashmir, north-east region and in sensitive areas such as the Srinagar airport, Ram Janmabhoomi and others. It is no surprise that today these indomitable Mahilas are employed in fighting Left Wing Extremism in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Maharashtra after undergoing jungle warfare training. The same CRPF veteran pointed out that CRPF Mahilas have covered themselves with glory for acts of valour. He added that CRPF Mahilas performed duties alongside troops of the India Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka. He mentioned that Lady Constable Kamlesh Kumari who was awarded the Ashok Chakra (posthumously) is the only lady in the CPMFs to be decorated for bravery.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

HINDSIGHT AND FORESIGHT

Universities and colleges must serve as catchment areas with greater value and emphasis on the National Cadet Corps. It should be a natural feeder service to not only the military but also the CPMFs. Conversely, each of the CPMFs must devise an ambitious recruitment programme to send home the message that a career in it is worth its weight its gold There are others too who brought glory to the force such as Constable Vimladevi (Sena Medal), Assistant Commandant Santo devi (Presidents Police Medal for Gallantry), Deputy Commandant F Mehra and Constable Bindu Kumari received Presidents Medal for Gallantry respectively. The list of accomplishments is endless. It is also important to note that CRPF Mahilas are the only women force in the world to represent the country in UN mission as an all women peacekeeping contingent. They continue to be deployed in Liberia for the past 8 years and have also participated in UN mission in Kosovo. The CRPF, in yet another ﬁrst, has created a Mahila Commando wing, to meet its operational requirements. The force today has four women ofﬁcers of the rank of Deputy Inspector General and large number of Commandants.

Covert Operations

While the CRPF has been at the forefront of bringing new synergy to its role, there was another organisation that employed women in covert role. The earlier avatar of the current Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), which was raised in the erstwhile North East Frontier Agency (NEFA) following Chinese threats in early sixties, employed a large body of women in its ranks especially in the civilian side. The then employment of SSB was in the form of “stay back” force to harass the “enemy” in the eventuality of a tactical withdrawal. A former SSB ofﬁcer recollected the valuable contribution of local women especially in covert roles and taking part in tough periodic exercises in inhospitable terrain. He revealed that women of NEFA and other parts of North-east region found it to be a matter of honour and pride to join the SSB in their duty to the nation. It is another matter that the SSB was hastily converted into a Central Police Organisation (CPO) following the Kargil Review Committee’s recommendations without providing any alternate arrangements, as a result experience and expertise gathered over several decades was allowed to pass into history. Unfortunately, from a strategic point of view the void continues to remain. The national intelligence services of the country also need to create more space and opportunities for women. There are few women at the higher management levels and they are mostly from the Indian Police Service and more women are needed in the lower echelons of the executive cadre of the two agencies. Campus recruitment of women into direct recruit posts of group “B” and “C” into the general duty cadre and technical cadre is advisable and recommended. The practice of utilising the services of the Staff Selection Commission to ﬁll posts across the spectrum could be dispensed with. Language and subject specialisation is very important from the

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

technical point of view. This could also be true of the other agencies like the CBI, NIA, DRI, NATGRID etc.

New Avenues

According to a report in a leading Indian daily there are 2,960 women officers of the tri-Services with the air force having a major share (1,334) followed by the army (1,289) and navy (337) respectively. It quotes a former Air Marshal to state that the air force is attractive to women candidates even though they are excluded from combat roles but have the opportunity to fly aircraft in multiple roles including rescue operations. In his annual Army Day address January 2014, our Army Chief, Gen Bikram Singh mentioned that (a) women officers would not be inducted in combat roles for the time being and (b) women would be allowed to join the combat support arms like Artillery and others and have the opportunity to command units outside the combat arms groups. This is a welcome development. The expansion to combat support arms will open more vistas. Hitherto, the combat arms and combat support arms, which form bulk of the army, were off-limits to women. The raising of the mountain strike corps will also increase the avenues of employment of more women officers. It will not be out of place to mention that several women officers of the Army Medical Corps have risen to three-star appointments not only in the army but also in the medical fraternity of the armed forces. Here I am tempted to share with you some interesting anecdotes about the equally savoured tenure of Ms Vasundhara Mohindra in the Indian Air Force (Courtesy The Hindu). Over to Vasundhara: “I am from the second batch in 1993 and one of the 18 women who were selected from more than 30,000 applicants. The selection procedure was the same for both men and women. We faced the same written exam, same round of interviews, debates ... and even the physicals were same. The day I reached Air Force Academy, I remember being excited. My mum (an NCC officer) had promised me that it would be a year of training with tons of fun and NO books (I was from BITS Pilani and tired of studying). The first thing I remember is the ‘fall in’. I realised we were 18 girls and more than 200 boys! The training period was exciting. I was amongst the fittest of the 18 and could take the ragda compared to others. This often made me a target of seniors and envy of fellow women officers. Each and every aspect of our training remained same as that of boys. We even had to pee in the open behind tarpaulin walls! Once the postings came, I reached Ambala, a hub of Fighter Pilots. I was given a separate room. Fellow officers had a bit of a trouble digesting this as the junior-most officer had a room to herself while they were all sharing. In an air force base, besides the primary duties there is a load of secondary duties which officers are expected to perform. Three months into my tenure I realised that I wasn’t being given any secondary duty. I learnt later that the ‘top man’ didn’t want any chaos as he was hoping for a foreign posting after his tenure at Ambala. I wonder what

‘chaos’ he imagined I would create. But all good things come to an end and after him the next boss had his head firmly on his shoulders and he decided I had to make up for all the secondary duties I had NOT done. Thinking back, the biggest thrill for me was to be addressed as SIR. Oh how I loved that! I was the first woman officer to be taken for a spin in a Jaguar while all MiG pilots were kept waiting. I learnt to drive on my boss’s sarkari jeep. I have driven a tractor with a trolley with three aircraft engines sitting pretty on it, a queen mary, a fork lift, a tanker topped up with petrol ... Alas, now I only get to drive a mere i 20. I was always treated with courtesy. The Men in Blue sure know how to treat a woman, in a sari or in uniform. My boss even had a WC installed in the office premises before I joined. But I did have to prove myself to some men. I remember a Master Warrant Officer who decided he would test me. He took our parade and drill. He singled me out one day and asked, if Madam could teach him how to give the command. I agreed readily, but not before asking him to address me correctly. He apologised and addressed me as ‘Sir’, but I still had to give the command. Boy, did I make them march! A young airman was bold enough to come and tell me, “Sir, aapne aaj paseene nikalwaa diye.” (Sir you had us sweating out there).” The Territorial Army is yet another area that must be considered for opening up to the induction of women officers especially in non-combat employment. There is tremendous scope here for part time soldiering. As a beginning, efforts should be made to get popular women sports personalities and eminent public figures to accept honorary ranks in the Territorial Army on the same basis as Kapil Dev, MS Dhoni and Sachin Tendulkar. Likewise, the CPMFs could also arrive at a suitable arrangement to get regional personalities to accept honorary ranks. A former two-star general, who played a major role in developing the employment road map for women, opined that the Intelligence Corps would be a major beneficiary of the decision since women officers could be trained as intelligence analysts on variety of subjects including combat intelligence, interpretation of technical intelligence, threats to national security, terrorism, developments in neighbouring countries, subject specialisation and future scenario. He added that this could also apply equally to the Corps of Signals. It was pointed out that several advanced nations employ women officers and other ranks in the role of intelligence analysts and to conduct research on emerging military technology, monitoring and interception of communications of the adversary. The best among them could also be sent on deputation to other ministries and departments including research and development establishments and the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS), Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), Multi-Agency Centre and Ministry of External Affairs. There is a growing groundswell in favour of induction of more women in the various civilian police forces and paramilitary of the country including the Coast Guard. It has been a gradual process done with care and caution.

Veteran officers of the CPMFs have not denied the existence of practical difficulties that arise for the higher management in ensuring privacy and security of the women personnel as also deft handling of occasional discipline issues that may arise. These tend to create mindset against women personnel as Commanders may feel that they would be better off without having to make special arrangements for women Some former senior military ofﬁcers and retired bureaucrats lament that there is very little positive publicity on the role and contribution of women in the armed forces and whatever is happening is piecemeal and lacking conviction. Media must play a major role in correcting the picture and adding balance to the subject. Prasar Bharti must redouble its programme content with focus on women, military and career. This should be a continuing process and not related to calendar events. Facebook and YouTube are excellent media for dissemination of information. An integrated approach is necessary.

Universities As Sources

Universities and colleges must serve as catchment areas with greater value and emphasis on the National Cadet Corps. It should be a natural feeder service to not only the military but also the CPMFs. Conversely, each of the CPMFs must devise an ambitious recruitment programme to send home the message that a career in it is worth its weight its gold. Recruitment of more and more directly recruited women officers to the posts of Platoon Commanders and Assistant Commandants / Company Commanders into the CPMFs is very essential. This needs careful cadre management along with timely promotions. Furthermore opportunities must be given to those hailing from the north-east region. Veteran officers of the CPMFs have not denied the existence of practical difficulties that arise for the higher management in ensuring privacy and security of the women personnel as also deft handling of occasional discipline issues that may arise. These tend to create mindset against women personnel as Commanders may feel that they would be better off without having to make special arrangements for women. Asked for his views, a former three star air force officer remarked that “this syndrome can only fade with time”. Views expressed by several senior military officers have appeared in public media from time to time.

Pay Commission As Magnet

The central government has recently announced the setting up of the Seventh Pay Commission (SPC) for its employees both civil and military. It would be worthwhile for the leaders and managers of national security to make a strong case for not only a better pay package, allowances and emoluments but also for promotions. Unless the pay scales are commensurate with the occupational requirements, the response to join the uniformed services will be very poor. A special effort would be necessary towards making our forces more attractive to women and also women friendly. There is tremendous untapped talent and potential out there which has to be speedily exploited to improve quality and efﬁciency of the armed forces.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

EVOLVED LOGIC! the damage such an incident caused to the operating environment and morale of the force. The presence of the fairer sex on the battlefield has been a subject of intense debate in armed forces and the governments all over the world. Women’s combat exclusion is projected as gender bias. An issue that needs to be viewed for its implications on defence preparedness of armed forces has been reduced to ‘equality of sexes’ and ‘women’s liberation’. Of course, for women’s rights activists with no exposure to military environment and ethos, “conquering the last male bastion” is more important than national security. The arguments advanced in its favour range from US women soldiers fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan to women wings of Naxalites and LTTE and a whole lot of other countries. Neighbouring Pakistan too has women fighter pilots in its air force now, they argue!!

NO EMOTIONAL PROS AND POLITICAL CONS

The arguments advanced in its favour range from US women soldiers fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan to women wings of Naxalites and LTTE and a whole lot of other countries. Neighbouring Pakistan too has women fighter pilots in its air force now, they argue!! Indian Army lowered the standards to accommodate women. As per the report of the Union Public Service Commission the demand for every seat in NDA there were 431 applicants. 80

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

ow will the media and the public react to the footage of a woman soldier being beaten and paraded on TV by her foreign captors? How about the possibility of our women ofﬁcers being captured and raped, or worse still being repatriated six months pregnant bearing enemy’s children? Professional soldiers are expected to accept such treatment when recruited regardless of gender. When one woman ofﬁcer was asked, if she had fears of being captured and tortured, “exactly the same fears as you had imagined”, she replied. “Why do you feel the need to worry about me? If I get captured it will be my problem, not yours”. Is our society today ready to back this view, which was apparently expressed as bravado displayed without feeling the intensity of the problem.

Sensational Case

Take another situation. On 11 September 2011, Squadron Leader Anjali Gupta of Indian Air Force was found hanging at a relative’s home in Bhopal. She had ﬁled an FIR against three of her superiors at a police station in Bangalore for sexual harassment. Being subject of Air Force Act, the police and even Karnataka High Court refused to intervene. General Court Martial (GCM) proceedings were initiated against her. She was found guilty of misappropriation of funds, insubordination and failure to report for duty. She was dismissed from duty. It was later revealed that she was in a live-in relationship with her superior ofﬁcer, Group Captain Amit Gupta. While the media and women rights groups painted the town red with their usual arguments, no one discussed

The induction of women other than medical and nursing branches itself was interesting. In early 90s, a Service Chief visited the United States and saw women participating in Guards of Honour. He was suitably impressed and a decision to induct women was made!! No attempt was made to study likely long-term implications of multiple issues involved and their effect on the fighting potential of the Services. Soon a race got underway between the three Services to induct women in maximum number of fields. It is only now that a plethora of complex issues are getting thrown up with resultant adverse fall-out. I must clarify here that the Services carry no male chauvinistic mindset. The daughters of Service officers have excelled in all fields proves that Service officers do not suffer from any gender bias and are very supportive of women’s advancement. The concept of equality of sexes is unquestionable. Its application should, however, never affect the fighting potential of the armed forces therefore the issue of women’s induction in the Services warrants decisions based on evolved logic and not emotional or political considerations.

The Case Against

In the last few decades, studies in US found that the average female army recruit was 12 centimeters shorter, 14.3 kilograms lighter, had 16.9 fewer kilograms of muscle and 2.6 more kilograms of fat than the average male recruit. She had only 55 per cent of the upper body strength and 72 per cent of the lower body strength of the average male. Since fat mass is inversely related to aerobic capacity and heat tolerance, women are also at a signiﬁcant disadvantage when performing aerobic activities such as marching with heavy loads and working in heat. At high altitudes, women’s handicap is such that it may affect their ability to reproduce. Finally, even when the experiments were controlled for height, women only had 80 per cent of the strength of men.

It puts combat effectiveness at risk to have an officer who has been employed on softer assignments as second in command, leave alone as a CO once they reach the qualifying service for such key assignments

Indian Army lowered the standards to accommodate women. Even then many women fail to qualify during their pre-commission training. For example, male cadets are required to run 5 km in 28 minutes whereas women are given 40 minutes. Similarly, males are required to jump across a 9 feet wide ditch with full equipment and personal weapon; women have to negotiate only a 5 feet wide ditch. Most women fail this too. Male members are required to undertake Physical Efﬁciency Tests till they attain the age of 45 years. No such tests have been prescribed for women ofﬁcers to avoid embarrassment to them in front of the troops. Concerns have also been expressed about the susceptibility of Indian women to frequent back problems, pelvic injuries and stress fractures.

WG CDR AN HANFEE VrC (RETD)

The writer served IAF for 23 years and handled command and staff assignments. He was also Deputy Director of helicopter ﬂeet of IAF in Air HQ. He is a graduate of Defence Services Staff College and an MBA from University of Pune.

Male Mindset

An Israel defence force study found that almost always, the male colleagues are reluctant to take women on hazardous missions such as reconnaissance or special operations, as they feared that in case of combat or discovery, their priority will be to save the women and not to complete the mission. Thus while men might be able to be programmed to kill, it is not as easy to programme men to neglect women.

Commanding Ofﬁcers’ Dilemma

Commanding Officer (CO) is the most important position in a battlefield. COs play key role in shaping the career of young officers. Safety, security and dignity of a woman under his command becomes his prime concern. This in turn restricts efficient employment and puts additional burden on already hard-pressed male counterparts. It puts combat effectiveness at risk to have an officer who has been employed on softer assignments as second in command, leave alone as a CO once they reach the qualifying service for such key assignments.

Shortage Of Male Combatants?

Another argument advanced is that such a step could help armed forces overcome shortage of combatants. But as per the report of the Union Public Service Commission the demand for every seat in NDA there were 431 applicants. Armed forces seek very exacting standards for males and accept no compromise in standards, hence this argument is not valid.

Why Only In Ofﬁcer Corps?

Women want to join only as ofﬁcers and not as soldiers. The concept of equality is given a go-by soon after commissioning. In only a matter of time the applications for peace postings and other special dispensations follow and the plank of equality vanishes. Most women commissioned in ﬂying branch in IAF, had no career orientation once they

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

women in uniform

Indian officers pride themselves in the fact that they lead from the front and hence have to be better than their soldiers both physically and professionally to be accepted as credible leaders. Women only as officers creates an impression that officers’ duties are softer received their commission and wings. Most find it hard to adjust to variation in perception and ground reality of environment. Lack of job satisfaction, poor comfort levels and hardship of married life takes its toll on them sooner than their male counterparts. Indian officers pride themselves in the fact that they lead from the front and hence have to be better than their soldiers both physically and professionally to be accepted as credible leaders. Women only as officers creates an impression that officers’ duties are softer. Acceptability of women as leaders was thus viewed as a political gimmick. For soldiers a leader who cannot run, train and exercise with troops and lacks required physical fitness cannot lead them in war. The interface between the leader and the led must be without any reserve or preconceived notions especially in battle conditions where jawans repose full faith in decisions / orders of the leader who is their role model and are prepared to lay down their lives on his order. This element vanishes with women officers around.

Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment and assaults of women soldiers is another major concern. The nature of combat environment puts women combatant at high risk. ‘Command rape’ amongst US troops in Iraq was a common occurrence. It led to moral degradation, psychological and legal issues which the combat units can do without.

Other Examples

The United States is considered a pioneer and a trendsetter

women in uniform FOND MEMORIES

EVOLVED LOGIC!

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

as regards induction of women in the Services. There are approximately 200,000 American women on active duty in the US armed forces. Britain has 9 per cent women. France has 19 per cent. In IDF, most women serve in non-combat positions and are conscripted for only two years (instead of four for men). Women make up 10 per cent of Russia’s military strength. But to use these to strengthen the case for women in combat in Indian context is not really relevant. Countries like Canada, Australia, Norway, Denmark etc face no external threat and are generally in peacetime mode. Contrast this with India where the majority of troops are deployed on active combat duties in remote, inhospitable and uncongenial areas. In Iraq, till date US troops have suffered about 6,000 casualties and in Afghanistan about 2,000 and none of them is a women soldier. It is obvious that women soldiers were sheltered by their male colleagues and organisation to avoid risk of getting captured by Al Qaeda and Taliban which means every male member is being put to additional risk just to showcase women in combat. Gulf War also introduced the concept of “360-degree war,” in which there is no real “front.” In this type of conflict, even cooks and supply sergeants must be capable of defending themselves. Women combatant with diluted training standards compromises war effort. As regrads outfits such as LTTE and Naxalites having women combatants, it is really out of place to compare constitutionally created institutions with irregular outfits. LTTE recruited women only after it fell short of male volunteers. Women held no high appointments and were generally used as pawns in indoctrinated suicide squads. The same can be said about Naxals.

Conclusion

No one is against induction of women in Indian armed forces as long as it does not compromise defence preparedness. There are about 1,400 women officers in Indian Army, 1,300 in IAF and 350 in Indian Navy, serving the nation with best of their abilities. They are employed in positions which guarantees their safety and dignity. But acceptance of women in the combat arm of military has not been smooth in any country due to social, behavioural and psychological problems at all levels. To date most countries do not allow women tank crews because of the cramped conditions and lack of privacy. There are also concerns about cramped living conditions on-board submarines and dangers posed by fumes inside the submarine to a foetus if a woman becomes pregnant. The armed forces have been constituted with the sole purpose of ensuring defence of the country and all policy decisions should be guided by this overriding factor. All matters concerning defence of the country have to be considered in a dispassionate manner. No decision should be taken which even remotely affects the cohesiveness and efficiency of the military. Concern for equality of sexes or political expediency should not influence defence policies. Armed forces cannot be treated as employment schemes or manipulated for cheap political gimmicks. Jai Hind!

MY LIFE IN THE ARMY A NOSTALGIC JOURNEY

n the summer of 72, I embraced Olive-Green. All of 22, with starry eyes, a fresh MBBS degree in hand and the proverbial black trunk chugging behind, I disembarked at Chandigarh station to join army and do my internship at the Command Hospital. On reaching the officers’ mess, the first person I met was this young smart officer with luxuriant hair and a ready smile who greeted me with a deep bow, “Good Morning Ma’am, welcome to army. I have been detailed to make you comfortable in the army.” He did … and is still doing it, albeit, minus his hair. Lieutenant (now Colonel) Goswami and I got married in 1975. This was my first positive experience in the army. Army is a way of life. Once you embrace it, you have to maintain certain decorum, both in uniform and off it and eventually it becomes a part of your personality for life. Army is disciplined and secular in true sense. It teaches you man-management, team-work, respect for ladies, seniors and ability to perform well under duress. During training period they treated us at par with boys. It was good that no considerations were shown. But afterwards … the work culture in India is generally not woman-friendly. And problems get further compounded if you are a single working woman! Being in uniform doesn’t help much. As a lady officer, I had ample opportunity to experience all these and some more ... because as the luck would have it, most of the times, I was the only lady officer posted in the unit / station. For example, the Field Hospital in Kapoorthala did not have a Ladies Room and declined to construct one for just one lady. So for a period of three and half years, I had to travel 1 km to the officers mess as and when required. When I had my first baby in 1976, the army did not have the concept of ‘maternity-leave’ for the lady officers. From their point of view, we were officers and not ladies … period! Delivering a child was my personal problem I had to deal with it during two months annual leave that I was entitled. The physical and mental stress led to the birth of a premature baby girl weighing 1 kg only. In the absence of incubators etc, I had a tough time keeping her alive! Seeing my plight, the army granted me one more month of half-pay leave to tide over the crisis! Another incidence that comes to mind has more to do with human nature. Army mindset you can say. There is a general

perception (quite vocal) in the army that ladies take maternity leave to enjoy life doing nothing and when they come back they should work harder to compensate. In 1981, I was posted to MH Panjim, Goa and joined along with my three months old son (army had started giving maternity-leave by then)! Within a month Annual Range Classification was scheduled. I was the only general duty medical officer there. Other six male doctors were specialists. It was not a very busy hospital for specialists. But they told the Commanding Officer (CO) point blank, “One of us can go easily but being a GDMO, it is her job and moreover she has just come back from long-leave! Let her do some work (conduct the firing). We will look after her duties for the day. After all she too is getting pay.”

COLONEL (DR) ALKA GOSWAMI VSM (RETD)

The writer graduated from the MGM Medical College, Indore with honours and joined the Army Medical Corps. During her tenure in the army, she held various posts in Chennai, Guwahati, Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of the country. She was the ﬁrst lady doctor to command the Military Hospital Aurangabad. While serving there, she was honoured with Vishisht Sewa Medal by the President of India, in recognition of services rendered by her to serving soldiers, ex-servicemen and their families in all districts of Marathwada. She retired from the army after serving for 36 years.

Since I was staying alone (my husband was posted elsewhere) in a civilian locality, I handed over my son to our civilian neighbours, expecting to be back by the lunch time. The firing–range was 60 km away. I had to lead the troops across river Zuari by a ferry. By the time I returned home, it was past 7 pm. The baby had cried himself into dehydration. CO and all the six specialist officers were at my house, looking shame-faced. All started blaming the CO for not ordering a male doctor to go for the firing.

It was not brickbats always. There were bouquets too. As Commanding Ofﬁcer of the Military Hospital at Aurangabad, I had my share of accolades. Being at the helm, I could now take decisions myself. At the outset, I spruced up the old dilapidated hospital building and modernised the equipment. I happened to be the ﬁrst lady CO of that hospital in 50 years and the only one till date. I connected well with the local population as well. As the year 1999 was the Golden Jubilee Year Of the hospital, with my limited staff and resources, I organised multifarious welfare activities for the troops and 60,000 ex-servicemen in seven districts of Marathwada. It was a grand success and I was awarded ‘Vishisht Seva Medal’ by the President of India. I went on to serve in the army for 36 years. I recall many ups and downs, but enjoyed every moment of my army-life! I met my husband in the army. All my kids were born in the Army Hospitals, educated in the central schools all over the country and groomed in the army environment. Our children have done us proud; they have created a niche for themselves in their professions. We can only thank the army for that. We lead a happy retired life now, living and reliving our old memories. As they say – once a soldier always a soldier!

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

post show report

GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS

COMMODORE RANJIT B RAI (RETD)

The writer is author of A Nation and Its Navy at War and served as Director Naval Operations and Intelligence in the Indian Navy and nine years with USA’s largest project carrier shipping company.

India is expected to spend an estimated US$ 135 billion over the next ten years on defence procurements, so the opportunity before the private sector is unprecedented. Now with the private sector playing an increasingly active role in the defence arena there is a perceptible change in the scenario and a slow but certain shift in the way the Indian Defence System has begun to gain momentum.

EFEXPO-2014, India’s eighth flagship Land, Naval and Internal Security Systems exhibition held from 6th to 9th February at New Delhi’s congested Pragati Maidan, where an Auto Components Show was also in progress, saw nations that supply equipment to India and Indian and foreign defence companies which have ongoing contracts and those who see prospects in the future rush to book space. It is estimated India’s potential defence spending sector wise, as per plans for combat / trainer aircraft is US$ 26.3 billion, support systems US$ 15.8 billion, rotary wings US$ 9.3 billion, fighting vehicles and howitzers US$ 15.8 billion, surface combatants US$ 20.8 billion and submarines US$ 46.7 billion totalling to US$ 134.7 billion in the next ten years and import content will remain high. In 2012-13 India topped the charts as the world’s leading importer of defence hardware and systems. With a slow down in Europe’s economy and China nearing self-sufficiency and joining the ranks as a large arms exporter, India remains an attractive destination for arms sales. Defence shows are also events when deals are consummated by nations and the champagne is uncorked. With DEFEXPO being held at a time when India’s annual defence budget of US$ 33.5 billion ending March, 2014 (recently tabled to be increased 2014-15 to US$ 36 billion) has been exhausted with a cut by the Finance Minister and the residual capital allocation has been transferred to the burgeoning revenue budget with increased salaries and inflation. So no company expected any

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

pathbreaking announcements. This, despite major orders for M 777 BAe 155 mm light airlift capable howitzers, 16 Naval multirole (Sikorsky Seahawk and NH-90), Boeing’s CH-47 and Apache AH-64 attack and Chinook airlift helicopters and the 126 Dassault Rafale fighter deals on the anvil in Ministry of Defence files. Yet all companies were at the show led by large Russia, Israel, French and US pavilions and SAAB which are the major suppliers most eager to show capabilities and network with Service and Ministry of Defence officials.

Not Well Organised

A Foreign Military Sales order from Lockheed for six C-130 additional transport plane was cleared just before the show, to pep up the atmosphere which has turned sombre with the cancellation of the 12 VIP AgustaWestland AW-101 helicopter deal and blacklisting of Finmeccanica and 26 companies for malpractices, mainly on the integrity clauses. Most of these companies had booked spaces and were barred from the show at the last minute, which was hurriedly organised by FICCI and MoD. (At DEFEXPO-2012, Rheinmetall AG of Germany was blacklisted but permitted to display). The released slack was taken up by the DRDO and Public Sector Government companies. A Press Conference and two sessions, ‘On Indigenisation’ were organised in a hall almost one kilometer away from the stalls, seeing delegates hunting for it and trudging distances. DEFEXPO is considered an international show, attracting international delegations and those invited by India’s MoD. The Singapore Air Show follows.

India’s MoD takes advantage of the fact that exhibitors are bound to attend and DEFEXPO 2014 deserved better arrangements. Defence Minister apologised publicly for inconvenience caused at the entry point on the first day. Lack of attention to detail was visible Every major defence company from 43 countries took up space and displayed their latest hardware and systems and such shows see many service personnel visit to glean new products and practices and is the bonus for the country. Foreign attaches and intelligence agencies report back to their countries. India’s MoD takes advantage of the fact that exhibitors are bound to attend and DEFEXPO 2014 deserved better arrangements. Defence Minister apologised publicly for inconvenience caused at the entry point on the ﬁrst day. Lack of attention to detail was visible. Media companies distributed magazines and dailies in numbers, depicting the boom in advertising also. Inaugurating the show after the traditional lamp lighting, in exhilarating Delhi winter weather in the open amphitheatre with many VIPs, the Service Chiefs, heads of companies and 142 foreign delegates and senior invitees, Defence Minister AK Antony stated: “The show shows there is ample space for global participation and signals a new chapter in the process of collaboration and partnership”, reﬂecting his call to indigenise, collaborate and partner in India’s defence production.

AgustaWestland Shadow

The 2013 Defence Production Procedure (DPP) emphasises procurement in this order – ‘Make in India’, ‘Buy and Make in India’ and last priority to ‘Buy from Abroad’ – with many complicated riders and no increase in the 26 per cent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), though a note assures that a higher FDI may be considered in a ‘case to case basis’ for special technologies. There have been no large FDI takers so far and the much touted 30 per cent Offsets, increasing to 50 per cent to garner technology has come a cropper. The services Offset contracts too have been suspended, after the malpractices

in the AW-101 contract came to light (there are many more), but Minister of State for Defence Mr Jitendra Singh at the show assured this is being reconsidered and asked for time. The MoD is embroiled in a contentious arbitration case with AgustaWestland over the AW-101 deal which could spring surprises, as three platforms have already been delivered and are at Palam airbase. A dedicated spacious white gleaming ‘India Pavilion’ marquee and few other spaces were occupied by government owned defence companies, the largest in a tented space built over the ‘Pragati Lake’. It housed India’s DRDO, OFB, missile maker Bharat Dynamics (BDL) and BrahMos in well appointed stalls with India’s order book laden government shipyards and Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL), Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and Bharat Dhatu Nigam showed off a wide range of products they have supplied and those in the pipeline for the three Services.

JVs Want Level Playing Field

The latest twin engine full size UAV Rustom MK2 rolled out on 5 February, the 155 mm 45 calibre towed Dhanush howitzer, the 130 mm gun on an Arjun chassis named Catapult and the lightweight BrahMos on an Su-30MKI attracted most attention, especially from foreigners and Service invitees. Larsen and Toubro with Denel inputs, Bharat Forge with Elbit inputs and TATAs with Nexter and South Korean inputs have offered to compete with OFB’s Dhanush 155 mm gun, but have not received support of army for ammunition and crew and Pokhran ranges for trials. This was their lament, led by Mr Baba Kalyani CMD of Bharat Forge Ltd at Pune which exports forgings and constitutes 82 per cent of its revenue and has multiple factories abroad. Another successful Indian company MKU from Kanpur which manufactures protective gear in India and in Germany is expanding and was also seeking a level playing ﬁeld.

Pak Nuclear Counterpoint

Most foreign delegates this writer spoke to, showed keenness for joint ventures and collaboration in projects including BrahMos and tanks as DRDO is designing a futuristic Main Battle Tank (MBT) and missiles but the procedure is

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

post show report

GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS attention at the show as DRDO’s Naval Material Research Laboratory (NMRL) at Ambernath near Mumbai with L&T has succeeded in trials of fuel cell AIP and a Maruti has run on fuel cells from Mumbai to Cochin. The other AIPs on offer are MESMA which is a closed steam generated system and Pakistan has it in the Agostas and DCNS has offered to Indian Navy on the Scorpenes and the Sterling engine from Kockums of Sweden now owned by HDW. The navy has researched all systems for suitability.

Submarine Potential

not clear and MoD’s responses are dilatory, they claimed. Dr Sivathanu Pillai CEO BrahMos, was on hand and confirmed with confidence, that the air launched lighter BrahMos will be indigenously tested this year on a modified Su-30MKI and the same missile will be offered to the navy for smaller ships. This also interested foreign delegates. It will be a ‘balance of power changer’ at sea in the region. Reports indicate Pakistan Navy is also planning to send one of its land based nuclear capable missiles to sea on a suitable platform including a large merchant ship. Observers stated this was as a reply to India’s acquisition of INS Vikramaditya and could pose challenges in strategy and tactics for Indian planners.

Offers On Submarines

After the successful underwater launch of the BrahMos, Pillai hinted BrahMos should be the navy’s choice for the next generation Type 75 India submarine US$ 10 billion project and should be included in the Request For Proposals (RFP) which is being ﬁnalised by the navy. All the potential major

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

submarine manufacturers in the competition have replied to the Request For Information, Navantia of Spain for the S-90s being built at Cartagena, HDW of Germany for the 214/6, models like Italy and Korea have, DCNS of France (which is struggling to deliver the first Scorpene now slated for 2016 delivery at MDL) for the Super Scorpenes and Rosoboronexport and Russian Technologies for the extended Amur. All entities at the show confirmed that they can fit 6/8 BrahMos missiles in a plug as a ‘Hunchback’ hull, astern of the coninng tower with an Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) plug and be ready to transfer the technology. AIP is the technology to make conventional diesel submarines operate like nuclear submarines and remain submerged and undetected for long durations. Japan, South Korea, Italy, Pakistan and Brazil have already adopted AIP. The supersonic BrahMos missile is fitted in all newer large Indian naval ships and the firings have been successful. The Type 75 Indian submarine attracted a lot of

Larsen and Toubro with Denel inputs, Bharat Forge with Elbit inputs and TATAs with Nexter and South Korean inputs have offered to compete with OFB’s Dhanush 155 mm gun, but have not received support of army for ammunition and crew and Pokhran ranges for trials. Another successful Indian company MKU from Kanpur which manufactures protective gear in India and in Germany is expanding and was also seeking a level playing field

Larsen and Toubro Ltd (L&T) at the show depicted its increased supplies (steering gears, launchers, helicopter handlings and switch gears etc) to the defence sector, especially for the Type 17/17A and the three Krivacks supplied from Russia’s Yantar and Type 15A and showcased a midget submarine on offer. L&T displayed the virtues of its Greenﬁeld shipyard at Tuttapuli near Ennore and

reconnaissance planes and will need newer interfaces. The army’s Battle Management Systems (BMS) with a satellite in the making will also be a big order and Expression of Interest (EOIs) are likely to be sent to Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Electronics Corporation of India (ECIL), Computer Maintenance Corporation (CMC), ITI, domestic private-sector major Tata Power SED, Rolta India, Wipro,

for the ﬁrst time unveiled its large contributions for the construction of India’s three nuclear submarines led by INS Arihant which is awaiting sea trials at the Shipbuilding Centre (SBC) at Visakhapatnam. L&T has signed an interesting MoU with Navantia of Spain for modular shipbuilding and Mr MV Kotwal a Board Director exuded conﬁdence to build 75 Indian submarines inhouse.

Larsen & Toubro, HCL, Punj Lloyd, Bharat Forge, Tata Consultancy, Info Systems and Tech Mahindra. All were at the show. The overseas defence companies in the fray are Israel Aerospace Industries, Rafael and Elbit of Israel; Thales and Nexter of France; Rhode & Schwartz of Germany; BAE Systems of the UK; Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and General Dynamics of the US and Selex of Italy.

Pipavav’s Foreign Collaborators

A show stopper positioned near the entrance was Almaz-Antey’s full size mobile Tor-M2KM AA missile battery from Russia which enhances the scope of its operational deployment, as the system can be used to protect stadiums from airborne attacks during large sports events with modern electronics and radar capable of detecting and handling up to 48 targets, displaying information on the 10 most dangerous ones and destroying four air targets simultaneously. In the International Fleet Review at Visakhapatman the IAF had deployed an anti-aircraft missile unit and such employment takes place in the Republic Day celebrations and likely to increase.

Pipavav Defence and Offshore Engineering Company Limited (PDOEC) the other large shipbuilding and heavy industry company, put up an expansive tent over Pragati’s garden space and showcased its collaborations with Atlas Electronik of Germany for SeaHake torpedoes. Atlas is upgrading Indian Navy’s HDW submarines and supplying ACTAS towed sonars for Type 17s. SeaHake is in competition for the Scorpenes at MDL with the Blackshark torpedo of Finmeccanica’s WASS. PDOEC displayed its collaboration with DCNS on systems and pitched it can make submarines and has a joint venture with MDL, which has not moved as of writing. Both L&T and PDOEC have employed large number of former naval ofﬁcers which is their forte.

Hardware for Network Centricity

The armed forces have entered the netcentric warfare arena with navy leading with the dedicated Rukmini GSAT 7 satellite system and Israeli terminals with UHF, C, S and Ku bands and the state-of-the-art P8I maritime

There were many small companies which support Indian Navy and Coast Guard in repairs and HH Ltd a specialist in Hydraulics and Yeoman which does reﬁts of small ships were placed right next to the Shipyards’ stall and overall DEFEXPO 2014 HAD HEAPS OF TECHNOLOGY ON SHOW – LESS ON BUSINESS. This is an India centric report.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

defence preparedness

DRDO’S CONTRIBUTION

CBRN: SELF-RELIANCE IN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGIES

Nearly 85 per cent of CBRN defence inventory held by armed forces has been developed by DRDO and produced by defence PSUs and around 60 private companies. The total value of such production exceeds Rs 1,000 crore.

here is a persistent threat from a variety of Chemical, nation to address the threat of CBRN emergencies is a Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) formidable challenge because anticipating such attacks agents including weapons of mass destruction and dealing with the devastating consequences of the (WMDs), as well as hazardous materials CBRN agents involved, is an arduous task. (HAZMAT), that can be used to kill or incapacitate the unprotected military / paramilitary forces and DRDO And CBRN Defence Technologies the undefended civilian population. Though, chemical DRDO through its R&D inventiveness being carried agents are the most prevalent; biological warfare agents out in over a dozen of its laboratories, has developed a are easier and cheaper to manufacture. Overt nuclear variety of devices, technologies and products in the area war is still a remote possibility due to the complexities of CBRN defence for addressing this threat holistically. involved. CBRN threats are becoming more prominent in DRDO enjoys a competitive edge in critical CBRN the civil sector as compared to their plausible implications defence technologies by maintaining a self-sustenance process through indigenous in the war scenario. Global developments. The detection, presence of networked terrorist Medical preparedness for mass protection and other attribution organisations, illicit arms trade, casualty event involving CBRN agents technologies developed by proxy wars, deteriorating state is an accepted weak link in the DRDO are providing significant solvency, religious fundamentalism, emergency management. It involves confidence to care providers home-grown terrorism and rogue for management of CBRN scientists further complicate measures taken in anticipation incidents. Current inventory of the CBRN threat scenarios. In of, during and immediately after a Indian armed forces for CBRN the aftermath of a major CBRN disaster to ensure that effects are defence includes 64 products emergency, a trail of misery is left minimised. DRDO besides R&D, is also used for detection, protection, behind in the form of profound involved in acquisition, adaptation, medical management and sufferings, immediate trauma, harnessing, testing and evaluating decontamination. DRDO has injuries and deleterious health global CBRN mitigation technologies indigenously developed Nerve effects leading to a high degree Agent Detectors, Residual of morbidity and mortality. This fact has significantly altered the traditional philosophies Vapour Detection Kit, Pocket Dosimeter, Portable of emergency response for the military, paramilitary Dose Rate Meter, Roentgenometers, Gamma Sensors, forces as well as civil responders. With proper Field Detection Kits for Bio-threat Agents, Portable protective equipment, training and decontamination Gas Chromatographs, Autoinjectors, Individual and measures, the primary effects of CBRN agents Collective Protection Systems, Respiratory Masks, Canisters, Decontamination Systems and Water can be overcome / controlled. Purification Systems, to name a few. Nearly 85 per cent Prevention Better Than Cure of CBRN defence inventory held by armed forces has National Policy on Disaster Management emanates been developed by DRDO and produced by defence from the belief that investments in mitigation are much PSUs and around 60 private companies. The total value more cost-effective than expenditure on relief and of such production exceeds Rs 1,000 crore. DRDO has also rehabilitation. Another major cornerstone of the approach been contributing immensely in education, awareness is that mitigation has to be multi-disciplinary spanning generation, sensitisation and knowledge management across all sectors of development. Since 1995 when issues besides providing advocacy to the government. Aum Shinrikyo attacked Tokyo’s subway rail system with Central Paramilitary Organisations, elite forces and civil Sarin gas, the defence forces and emergency responders administration are also looking at DRDO to help them around the world realised the need to develop adequate acquire the desired capabilities. response capabilities against CBRN agents. The use of WMDs, CBRN agents, human bomb and ‘dirty bombs’ Recent Initiatives (explosives coupled with chemical / radiological agents) ‘Preparedness’ implies the state of readiness to deal with a attacks against defence and civilian targets, are essential threatening situation or emergency and the effects thereof. issues to be pondered, on which necessary preparedness National vision for Disaster Management, is to build a and training efforts need to be focused. Preparing the safer and disaster resilient India by developing a holistic,

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

pro-active, multi-disaster and technology-driven strategy for disaster management. Medical preparedness for mass casualty event involving CBRN agents is an accepted weak link in the emergency management. It involves measures taken in anticipation of, during and immediately after a disaster to ensure that effects are minimised. DRDO besides R&D, is also involved in acquisition, adaptation, harnessing, testing and evaluating global CBRN mitigation technologies. Defence Research and Development Establishment, Gwalior, has done commendable work on Chemical and Biological Countermeasures. Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS) besides research also works in a networking mode on medical management of CBRN with specialised research units across the country. Medical preparedness should address necessity of planning and practice, exercises as being practiced by INMAS since its very inception. The medical countermeasures development programme include studies on radio-protectors, radio-recovery agents, supportive medical and trauma aid, decontamination technologies and devices, radio-decorporation agents and other modalities. Sixteen new CBRN drugs developed by INMAS have been recently approved as investigating new drugs by the Drug Controller General of India for use during CBRN emergencies.

DR RAKESH KUMAR SHARMA

The writer is Scientist ‘G’, Additional Director and Head, Division of CBRN Defence at the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS) Delhi.

After any nuclear or radiological emergency, there exist possibilities of external contamination. Decontamination of contaminated personnel is the most important step after medical stabilisation (by providing basic life support). Decontamination is to be done swiftly and accurately, whenever contamination is even suspected. In addition, one has to ensure avoidance / minimisation of spread / cross contamination. In the area of skin decontamination technologies, Shudhika − a skin decontamination kit was developed in accordance with IAEA SAFETY GUIDE No. TS-G-1.2 (ST-3) and AERB Standard speciﬁcation No. 2, AERB/SS-2 (1990). Shudhika is used for management of victims contaminated with toxic radioactive materials. It is a buddy care device that also encapsulates the medical management items requisite for primary ﬁrst aid in

conjunction with radioactive contamination management. REMOCON self-usable radio-decontamination wipes are advanced self-decontamination system that significantly reduces the requirement of clean water with minimal radioactive waste generation. After use the contaminated wipes can be placed back in the plastic zipper pouch itself and thereby avoiding further spread of contamination. Protective clothing for Medical First Responders (MFR) is an advanced lightweight, breathable, water and dust proof suit with specific design to accommodate utility items. The suit is made from high strength polyester fabric which is coated with a breathable polymer from the inner side of the clothing and with a waterproof coating on the outer side. This has been designed for personnel working at the medical posts in the green zone for managing the casualties of CBRN emergencies. An automated external decontamination device with minimal human intervention, ‘christened as SUSNAN’, is another innovative product. It has movable radioactivity sensors for scanning the contaminated victims. The detection data is stored on a PLC, which is used to automatically pre-programme the plan to schedule dry / wet washing cycles till the individual gets completely decontaminated. Proof of concept has been demonstrated and various versions are under development for field condition, non-ambulatory victims, fixed decontamination chambers and vehicle borne systems etc.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

defence preparedness

DRDO’S CONTRIBUTION

To target diseased state induced by microbes with enhanced antibiotic resistance, a herbal bioprospection model has been developed, tested and validated for selection of various potential herbal candidates for screening as alternative evidence based complimentary medicine. It has shown promising leads for management of multi-drug resistant E coli strain inhabited with NDM-1 infection.

organisations and civilian stakeholders. Fortyone training courses were conducted during 2010-2014 for different stakeholders such as NDRF, CISF, PSS, NSG, Navy, SPG, RAMT, QRT and QRMT.

Aptamer based nanosensors for biothreat surveillance is another area of research. Nanotechnology has enabled a number of sensors to be miniaturised with increased sensitivity to target. The reduction in size of the sensing elements has allowed for multiplexing and has provided unprecedented access to physical, chemical and biological data. This data can be used for health, safety and environmental monitoring. We have synthesised a variety of nanomaterial for making the chip having the biosensing element.

of their condition. The purpose of this software tool is to train medical and emergency personnel in the process of S.T.A.R.T. (Simple Triage and Rapid Treatment) and to follow certain established rules regarding the tagging of a victim. The trainee responder gets description of chosen victims. Evaluation is based on accuracy of tag and time taken to tag each casualty in a real time digital mode. CBRN Command and Control Software is a web based tool to analyse and facilitate communication between various agencies / stakeholders during an event of a disaster. The software is a messaging based application where users can communicate with other users in their contact list and also deploy / handover the assets they hold in order to mitigate the incident and to manage a worst case scenario in digital environment.

We are demonstrating usefulness of ‘Daksha’ a remotely operated vehicle developed by R&D Estt (Engrs), Pune, for handling of CBRN material. It is presently being developed for CBRN detection. A semiconductor based radiation detection module ‘DELRAD’ has also been integrated with Netra – an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle to help in radiation detection without human intervention

We are establishing a Radio Chemical Analysis facility for monitoring of levels of radio-isotopes in the body by screening the biological samples in High Resolution-Sector Field-Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectroscopy (HR-SF-ICP-MS) facility. This will provide a mass screening procedure to observe the effects of drugs / decorporation agents given to internally contaminated victims.

Static and Mobile Whole Body Counting Facility has an important role in monitoring the therapeutic response while using decorporating agents to clear the internal radioactive contamination from the body. Usefulness of such systems has been proven in Japan during Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant incident recently.

Community Awareness

Community resilience in the area of CBRN is dismally low in India. The CBRN itself is not a familiar common term for the common man in spite of being a persistent threat. In order to relate the responders to the various terminologies, protocols and generalised procedures relevant to CBRN mitigation, a knowledge management (KM) series CBRN knowledge manual was developed. It includes: a) CBRN Mitigation – Do’s and Don’ts; (b) CBRN Casualty Management at Incident Site; (c) CBRN Casualties Management at Hospitals; (d) CBRN: Glossary, Abbreviations and Common Terms and; (e) Demystifying awareness manuals for Novel H1N1, Chikungunya and Superbugs.

Use of Interactive Mannequins for demonstrating effects of CBRN agents, is a well accepted feature of such courses for enhancing knowledge and skills. Human patient simulation system comprises of life-sized fully programmable computerised patient mannequin which displays all physiologic behaviours such as breathing, blinking etc. It responds in real time to a variety of clinical interventions and pharmacological drugs. It can also undergo life support interventions such as Intubation, CPR, ventilation, deﬁbrillation etc which otherwise cannot be practiced / taught on live patients.

INMAS has been organising extensive training courses on ‘Raising preparedness for response to CBRN Emergencies’ for armed forces, paramilitary

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

Two application softwares namely ‘CBRN Triage Software’ and ‘CBRN Command and Control Software’ have been developed for CBRN Training in collaboration with Center for Study of Science, Technology (C-STEP), Bangalore. Triage is the process of determining the priority of a victim’s treatments based on the severity

A fixed whole body counting facility is available at INMAS for monitoring of internal contamination (successfully used after Chernobyl Accident). Its containment chamber was developed from nearly 25 cm thick Cobalt free Steel (pre World War-II). Average Traditional Learning, Technology Operational Rate: 30-35 persons / day. A Mobile centric Audiovisual aids, e-books, Whole body counting system is under development Mobile Apps based Interactive learning for monitoring of internal contamination in the Field based field conditions. The containerised chamber is Psychomotor Skills being developed in collaboration with BEL Ltd, and Agility improving Situational Navi Mumbai and would be mounted on an Training Knowledge Training in acquisition, Medical All Terrain Vehicle, after fitments. Average Council worst case measure and Applied Operational Rate would be ~50 persons / day. scenarios to Research Blended identify Critical Gaps

Table top Exercises, Mock Drills with simulated agent scenario for Decision-making Practices

training and Skill mastering

Cognitive Task Training in 4D simulation, VR and immersion environment for enhancement of Reﬂexes

Our vision for creating CBRN competence building is presented in the illustration on the left. To conclude, the technology driven CBRN mitigation training and research activities are an inescapable requirement and persistent efforts should be made to meet the future challenges in an effective scientiﬁc manner.

March 2014 DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT

get connected

Subscribe Now! TENURE

COVER PRICE

DISCOUNTED PRICE

INDIA

You Pay

SHIPPING CHARGES DELHI / NCR

REST OF INDIA

DELHI / NCR

REST OF INDIA

1 year

` 1440

` 1008

` 400

` 700

` 1408

` 1708

2 years

` 2880

` 1872

` 800

` 1400

` 2672

` 3272

3 years

` 4320

` 2592

` 1200

` 2100

` 3792

` 4692

US$ 240 US$ 480 US$ 720

US$ 156 US$ 288 US$ 396

US DOLLARS US DOLLARS US DOLLARS

120 240 360

US DOLLARS US DOLLARS US DOLLARS

US$ 300 US$ 600 US$ 900

US$ 195 US$ 360 US$ 495

US DOLLARS US DOLLARS US DOLLARS

240 480 720

US DOLLARS 435 US DOLLARS 840 US DOLLARS 1215

SAARC COUNTRIES

1 year 2 years 3 years

REST OF THE WORLD

1 year 2 years 3 years

I would like to subscribe to DSA for I would like to gift a subscription of DSA for

1 Year

February 20 14

DEFENCE AND SECURITY ALERT The First and the Only ISO 9001:2008 Certified Defence and Security Magazine in India

2 Years

276 528 756

3 Years

Name (Self )................................................................................................................................ Organisation ........................................................................ Billing Address................................................................................................................... City.......................................... Pin code ..................................... Shipping Address.............................................................................................................. ......................................City........................................................... State.........................................Pin code............................Tel.......................................................................Mob..................................................................... E mail id.......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... DD / Cheque No...................................................................................................Dated.................................Drawn on....................................................... for ` ...................................................................................................................................................... in favour of OCEAN MEDIA PRIVATE LIMITED, Payable at New Delhi. Please add ` 50 extra for all outstation cheques.

Terms and Conditions Minimum subscription is for one year ie 12 issues. Your subscription will start with the next available issue after the receipt of your payment. DSA issues will be dispatched through Postal / Courier Services, as advised by the subscriber. Please forward the completed subscription form with all the required details. DSA will not be responsible for any theft, loss or delay once the magazine has been dispatched. Please mention your subscription ID in all your future communications with us. Please inform our subscription department about non-receipt of your copy latest by 20th day of the month, failing which the request for re-dispatch will not be entertained. Subscription prices can also be viewed at the following web link http://www.dsalert.org/dsa-subscription/print-edition Print and Online editions can be subscribed online through credit card via Payment Gateway. The terms and conditions may change without any prior notice. This offer is for new subscribers, valid from 1st April 2013. This subscription form supersedes all the previous. Please address all your subscription related queries through E-mail: subscription@dsalert.org or call us at: +91-11-23243999, 23287999. Write to us at: Subscription department, Defence and Security Alert (DSA), 4/19 Asaf Ali Road, New Delhi - 110002 (INDIA).

For print edition login at: www.dsalert.org/dsa-subscription/print-edition For online edition login at: www.dsalert.org/dsa-subscription/online-edition

Exclusive Interview

Role of DRDO in National Defence

The Greek Ambassador His Excellency Ioannis E Raptakis