Indian Army female officers & gender discrimination, case of suicide

"RECENTLY, Major Seema Singh of Indian army pleaded a case in the Supreme Court requesting it to dismiss the Union government’s challenge to a Delhi High Court verdict ordering permanent commission for women. She said it was ridiculous on the part of the government to plead before the court that it was alright for a women officer to serve for 14 years in combat zones, but thereafter they become a risk. Major Singh said, “The claim of Union of India that beyond 14 years there is a probability of women officers being exposed to hostile environment where there is a grave danger to them coming in contact with enemy, smacks of gender discrimination”. She gave the examples of women officers commanding Army supply convoys single-handedly through the most militancy-afflicted areas of Jammu and Kashmir and winning laurels for the country abroad during UN peacekeeping operations in disturbed African countries.

The Indian Army suffers from acute gender bias to deny permanent commission to women officers who work shoulder to shoulder with male officers to assist and support troop in combat zones. The policies for women in Army not only discriminate her against male officers but also lower her status to that of a junior commissioned officer, whom she has been leading for 14 years. They are working for the Army for 14 years, which is neither pensionable nor gives her any retirement benefits. She is simply thrown out of the organization after 14 years and that too not on the basis of poor performance but due to her gender and left to fend for herself. The Indian Army is using the policy of use and throws while dealing with its trained women officers.

Women officers and male officers commissioned into these services are performing similar jobs, undergoing similar professional courses and are being posted to all field and peace postings. There is no separate charter of duties for women officers or short service commissioned male officers and permanent commissioned male officers. Women officers are not even treated equal to male officers that are rendered unfit to serve the fighting arm of the Army like infantry, armed corps, aviation, artillery and mechanized infantry. These unfit male officers are absorbed in services such as Ordnance Corps, Service Corps, Corps of Electrical & Mechanical Engineers, Judge Advocate General, Education Corps, Medical Corps, Dental Corps, Remount and Veterinary Corps, Corps of Engineers, Corps of Signals and Military Intelligence Corps, in which women officers endure identical job hazards for 14 years before being thrown out.

Gender bias and discrimination is prevalent in the Indian Army. The gender bias is lowering the morale, self esteem and has a demotivating effect on every career oriented girl who wishes to serve the nation by joining the defence forces. The Indian Army admitted women to its ranks eighteen years ago but they are not assigned combat roles (unlike in armies of many other nations). Although women have been inducted in some branches of Indian army yet the discrimination against them has not allowed the necessary integration in the armed forces.

Women are recruited only on Short-Service Commissions of five to ten years and cannot rise above the rank of a Major. The Indian army is against the permanent commission for women. It argued that it is not possible to give extensive assignments to women officers because of “organizational hierarchy, lack of mobility” besides the possibility of stagnancy because of the “limited role” played by them. Army argued that it could not risk women in combat positions. Ironically, the strength of women officers posted in services in combat zone is 30% whereas short service commissioned male officers comprise 29% and permanent commissioned male officers have 23% presence. The male dominated army does not like the women presence in army otherwise in reality men and women working in support arms work much behind the combat lines and have no danger of coming in contact with the enemy.

There are approximately 2,200 women officers in Indian Army. Indian Army is forced to turn to women folks as there are not enough males opting for military service. The Indian army is following the western traditions of inducting women in the army but it failed to provide them conducive working environment. The women in Indian Armed forces continue to face atrocities. Apart from not giving women permanent commission, women faced harassment at the hands of male counterparts and there are even instances where women committed suicide due to job dissatisfaction. In 2006, a newly commissioned lady Army Officer Sushmita Chakravorthy committed suicide by shooting herself with her service rifle in Udhampur just 10 months after joining the service. She died on the spot. The 25 year old Lieutenant Sushmita was dissatisfied and unhappy with her job. Sushmita was a gold medalist (MSc Chemistry). She joined the Indian army with dreams to serve the nation but army had reduced her to doing catering jobs, organizing late night parties and counting trucks and supplies. She wanted to leave the army but unable to do so as she had no money to repay the amount which the army had spent on her training. Suicides within Indian Army and soldiers and security personnel killing each other are becoming a common practice and a routine matter throughout India. But this was the first time in the Indian Military history that a woman committed suicide due to poor job satisfaction."


"PAKISTAN OBSERVER" NEWSPAPER,
Mamoona Ali Kazmi

Email: observer@pakobserver.net