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Will the Indian Army ever have a Female Army Chief? 

There have been significant reforms in the Indian army regarding women’s participation in recent years. The Indian Army has made several positions available to women, including combat roles that were...

There have been significant reforms in the Indian army regarding women’s participation in recent years. The Indian Army has made several positions available to women, including combat roles that were previously reserved for men only. This decision has been widely praised as a positive step towards gender equality and women’s empowerment in the military.

Will the Indian Army ever have a Female Army Chief
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Some of the key reforms that have taken place in the Indian army for women:

  • The Indian Army announced in 2016 that it would allow women to serve in combat roles. Women can now apply for positions in the infantry, artillery, and armored corps, among others.
  • Women were first inducted into the Indian Army’s military police in 2019. The Corps of Military Police Centre and School in Bengaluru trained the first batch of 100 female soldiers.
  • The Indian Army announced in 2020 that women would be allowed to serve as Permanent Commission officers in all ten branches of the army. This means that female officers will now have the same opportunities for advancement and promotion as male officers.
  • In addition to combat and officer positions, the Indian Army has created opportunities for women in signal, engineering, and medical corps.
  • Recently, we saw Captain Deeksha C Mudadevannanavar who is serving as a Doctor in the PARA Special Forces, we saw her training videos and photos and also we were told about the news that Indian Air Force and Indian Navy will start inducting women in their Special Forces unit. So we can see how Indian Army is bringing reforms for women in the Organizations.

Also read: Meet Captain Deeksha: Doctor In The Parachute Regiment (Special Forces) Battalion

However, have you ever thought about Why there is no woman Chief of Army Staff or Chief of Air or Naval Staff? In this article, we shall discuss the same. Please keep in mind all the views and points discussed are completely personal and my own personal thought process.

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Indian Army Chief of Staff

The Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) (also known as the Army Chief) is a statutory position in the Indian Army that is typically held by a four-star general. The chief is the professional head of the ground forces and a key adviser to the Minister of Defence as the highest-ranking officer to serve solely in the Indian Army. In addition, the COAS is a member of the National Security Council and thus an advisor to the president and prime minister. Unless the Chief of Defence Staff and/or the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee are army officers, the COAS is typically the most senior army officer in the Indian Armed Forces. Below is the list of the Chief of Army Staff to date.

S.No.NameRankTenureUnit of Commission
1General Sir Robert Lockhart Commander-in-Chief15 Aug 1947 to 31st Dec 194751 Sikhs Frontier Force
2General Francis Robert Roy BucherCommander-in-Chief21 June 1948 – 15 January 1949Scottish Rifles
3Field Marshal Kodandera Madappa CariappaCommander-in-Chief16 January 1949 – 14 January 1953 Rajput Rifles
4General Maharaj Rajendrasinhji Jadeja Commander-in-Chief15 January 1953 – 1 April 19552nd Lancers (Gardner’s Horse)
5General Maharaj Rajendrasinhji Jadeja Chief of Army Staff1 April 1955 – 14 May 19552nd Lancers (Gardner’s Horse)
6General Satyawant Mallana SringeshChief of Army Staff15 May 1955 – 7 May 195719th Hyderabad Regiment
7General Kodandera Subayya ThimayyaChief of Army Staff8 May 1957 – 7 May 196119th Hyderabad Regiment
8General Pran Nath ThaparChief of Army Staff8 May 1961 – 19 November 19621st Punjab Regiment
9General Jayanto Nath ChaudhuriChief of Army Staff20 November 1962 – 7 June 19667th Light Cavalry
10General Paramasiva Prabhakar KumaramangalamChief of Army Staff8 June 1966 – 7 June 1969Regiment of Artillery
11Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji ManekshawChief of Army Staff8 June 1969 – 15 January 197312th Frontier Force Regiment
12General Gopal Gurunath BewoorChief of Army Staff16 January 1973 – 31 May 1975Dogra Regiment
13General Tapishwar Narain RainaChief of Army Staff1 June 1975 – 31 May 1978Kumaon Regiment
14General Om Prakash MalhotraChief of Army Staff1 June 1978 – 31 May 1981Regiment of Artillery
15General Kotikalapudi Venkata Krishna RaoChief of Army Staff1 June 1981 – 31 July 1983Mahar Regiment
16General Arun Kumar Shridhar VaidyaChief of Army Staff1 August 1983 – 31 January 19869th Deccan Horse
17General Krishnaswamy Sundarji Chief of Army Staff1 February 1986 – 31 May 1988 Mahar Regiment
18General Ashwa Nath SharmaChief of Army Staff1 June 1988 – 30 June 199016th Light Cavalry
19General Sunith Francis RodriguesChief of Army Staff1 July 1990 – 30 June 1993Regiment of Artillery
20General Bipin Chandra JoshiChief of Army Staff1 July 1993 – 19 November 199464th Cavalry
21General Shankar Roy ChowdharyChief of Army Staff20 November 1994 – 30 September 199720th Lancers
22General Ved Prakash MalikChief of Army Staff1 October 1997 – 30 September 2000Sikh Light Infantry
23General Sundarajan PadmanabhanChief of Army Staff1 October 2000 – 31 December 2002Regiment of Artillery
24General Nirmal Chander VijChief of Army Staff1 January 2003 – 31 January 2005Dogra Regiment
25General Joginder Jaswant SinghChief of Army Staff1 February 2005 – 30 September 2007Maratha Light Infantry
26General Deepak KapoorChief of Army Staff1 October 2007 – 31 March 2010Regiment of Artillery
27General Vijay Kumar SinghChief of Army Staff1 April 2010 – 31 May 2012Rajput Regiment
28General Bikram SinghChief of Army Staff1 June 2012 – 31 July 2014Sikh Light Infantry
29General Dalbir Singh SuhagChief of Army Staff1 August 2014 – 31 December 20165 Gorkha Rifles
30General Bipin RawatChief of Army Staff31 December 2016 – 31 December 201911 Gorkha Rifles
31General Manoj Mukund NaravaneChief of Army Staff31 December 2019 – 30 April 20227 Sikh Light Infantry
32General Manoj PandeChief of Army Staff30 April 2022 – PresentCorps of Engineers

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The Age as a Factor

We can see that there are no Female chiefs of staff to date. Let us know the reason why.

After nearly 38 or 39 years of service, the Chief of Army Staff assumes this position. Women officers have been serving in the Army for the past 26 years at the most. Lady officers were not inducted into combat arms such as the armored corps, infantry, and so on till 2016 when the Army stated that it will induct women in combat roles. The Supreme Court in 2020, ordered that women officers in the Army be given permanent commissions. Then in 2021, the landmark decision came that girls will be joining NDA and till now 19 girl cadets are under training in the academy.

Indian army

Now if have to make a conjecture, It is visible that these girls who will be passing from NDA will make it into the top list of generals in the Indian Army till they attain the age of 38,39 or even 40. Also Earlier due to restrictions, we were not having an infantry brigade commander or a divisional commander as they would simply lack the fundamental experience of growing in a combat unit. But recently we saw Colonel Geeta Rana, a woman officer from the Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers (EME), taking command of an independent unit in the sensitive Ladakh sector.

Also read: Meet Colonel Geeta Rana: First Woman To Lead Army Unit Near China Border In Ladakh

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The Regiment/Arm as a Factor

COAS requires field soldiering experience ranging from junior to senior. They are trained at each rank, gain experience in command and staff work, and strive to be the best of their batch before becoming Chief of the Army/Navy/Air Force. The Fighting Arms have this experience, skill, knowledge, and training, whereas the Supporting Elements do not.

Each Supporting element has Generals, but they do not become Chiefs of the Army, Navy, or Air Force. How would COAS know how soldiers feel or react in those circumstances if he hadn’t served on the front lines as a young Army officer?

Only chiefs from the fighting corps—mostly infantry, armored, and artillery—are nominated and till now only Chief of Staff of the IA from a different background is General Manoj Pandey from the Corps of Engineers. Now, since women are getting combat roles and permanent commissions, we will definitely see a woman as the chief of Army/Navy/Airforce Staff in the near future.

Conclusion

Reforms in any organization are needed as it improves its working and diversity. Indian Armed Forces being one of the most superior Organizations in the world is bringing reform that will keep men and women in pairs. In the coming future, we will see women as SF operators, Core Commanders, Station Commanders, Commanders, and ultimately Chief of Army Staff. Nonetheless, it depends on you how good you are and how better you want to be in the future. Serving in the Army is a sense of great pride irrespective of the rank you hold.

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