New Delhi: As many as 7,093 women are serving in Indian Army, 1636 (excluding Medical and Dental branches) in Indian Air Force and 748 including Medical and Dental officers in the Indian Navy, the government said in Lok Sabha on Friday. This information was shared as a written reply by Ajay Bhatt, Minister of State for Defence in a response to a question from a couple of MPs asking the number of women serving in various Defence forces across the country at present.
The Minister in his response noted that the "Employment in Indian Armed Forces is gender neutral." And that "There is no distinction in the deployment and working conditions of male and female soldiers in the arms and services in which they serve."
To a question on whether the Government has formulated any rules to deploy them as per their convenience, Bhatt replied that in the "Indian Army: Consequent to the grant of Permanent Commission to Women Officers (WOs), a gender-neutral Career Progression policy covering employment and promotional aspects was promulgated on 23 November 2021, providing equal opportunities to women officers in the Arms/Services where they are commissioned."
For Indian Air Force, "Women officers are empowered to tenant key appointments including Commanding Officers in Combat Units of various field units. The rules in this regard are gender-neutral and provide them with equal opportunities. Their medical fitness and medical conditions are also factored prior to their effective utilization," he said.
While in the Indian Navy, "Officers are given opportunities for spouse co-location, re-settlement posting and compassionate grounds posting in a gender-neutral manner," the MoS said. To a question on whether there is any provision for timely leave for women working in Defence services, the Minister said, "Women are granted Maternity Leave and Child Care Leave etc. in addition to other leave applicable to their male counterparts."
When being asked to comment on whether the armed forces have yet to fully accept women as equals in their ranks, the Minister apprised the Members about the initiatives taken up by the Defense Ministry to promote women empowerment in Defence services and highlighted steps such as "Grant of Permanent Commission (PC) to Women Serving Personnel."
He further added that Armed Forces have opened entry for women candidates in NDA with 19 cadets including 10 for Indian Army joining the academy every six months and others.
