The induction of women has met with mixed success in the past 13 years. At one stage, a few officers from the first batch had even petitioned the army to increase their tenure beyond 10 years. Considering that the first batches got to serve for only five years, today’s women officers have the option of a tenure of 14 years. However, there’s been some resentment among the gentleman officers who feel that a number of peace-time vacancies have now become the exclusive preserve of women. The issue has been further complicated by marriages within the service. The army’s military secretary’s (MS) branch, tasked with all postings, has to ensure married couples are posted together. Of late, the services have also taken stringent steps in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment of lady officers.
The army top brass, while considering the issue of inducting women into the combat arms, will have to deal with several issues key to morale and discipline. There’s also a debate on whether standards will be relaxed within the fighting arms. Earlier, training standards were relaxed for women cadets, much to the resentment of male personnel, at the Officers Training Academy. Still, even now the army is only looking at staff appointments within the fighting units.
