Is the Indian Army ready for women in combat roles: Not yet says Chief
New Delhi, Dec 1: The Indian Army is not yet ready to have women in combat roles, Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat has.
The Army chief, however, said there are several other fields where the Army is thinking of inducting women, such as information and psychological warfare.
Peace possible only if Pakistan becomes secular like India: Army Chief
"We are not yet ready for that (women in combat roles) as facilities have to be created... Women also need to be prepared for that kind of hardships," he said.
"It is not easy. Let us not compare ourselves with Western nations, which are more open," Gen Rawat told reporters on the sidelines of the Passing Out Parade of the 135th course at the National Defence Academy here.
"Yes, we may be more open in our big cities, but our Army personnel are not coming from big cities only. They are coming from rural areas too, where the inter-mingling, which is expected, is still not there," he said.
"They are already there in education and law, so the other field we have identified for them is information warfare, psychological warfare and (we are) also considering the accounting field where women can be inducted,"he said.
AAP leader Phoolka apologizes for remarks against Bipin Rawat
"Women
officers
are
being
inducted
into
all
the
three
services.
But
what
we
have
to
decide
is
whether
some
of
them
can
be
given
permanent
commission,"
Gen
Rawat
said.
The
Army
has
taken
a
call
that
there
are
some
aspects
and
fields
where
"we
need
some
kind
of
continuity
and
permanency,"
he
said.
"In a command-oriented army, male officers do not fit the bill everywhere. The Army needs language interpreters as military diplomacy is gaining ground. The basic requirement is understanding the language while talking to other nations, military to military. So we are looking for women as interpreters," he said.