The Army was considering inducting women cadres into battalions of the Territorial Army as a pilot project, with their recruitment to be limited to a few battalions initially, sources told PTI on Sunday.
The aim of the initiative is to continuously expand opportunities for women within the force.
The Territorial Army as it exists today was established with the passage of the Territorial Army Act on August 18, 1948 and was officially launched by India’s first Governor General C. Rajagopalachari on October 9, 1949, PTI reported.
According to sources, the army was considering inducting women cadres into battalions of the territorial army as a pilot project. Their recruitment will initially be limited to a few battalions and may subsequently increase in other battalions based on initial feedback, they added.
Government emphasizes the essence of ‘Nari Shakti’ in the armed forces.
In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha in March 2022, the then Defense Minister Ajay Bhatt said that the philosophy of combat employment of women in the armed forces was an ever-evolving process and regularly reviewed by them.
“At present, women in the Indian Army are inducted into 10 arms and services, namely, Corps of Engineers, Signal Corps, Army Air Defence, Army Service Corps, Army Ordnance, Electronics and Mechanical Engineers Corps, Army Air Corps, Intelligence Corps,” said Judge Advocate General for Army and Army Education.
The Territorial Army was raised on the concept of a “citizen soldier’s army”. In addition to expanding organizational requirements, the Territorial Army also provides an opportunity for volunteer citizens of India, particularly those of regular army age, to serve the nation in uniform.
Currently, the Territorial Army has a strength of around 50,000 personnel comprising 65 divisional TA units such as Railway, IOC, ONGC and non-departmental TA units of the Infantry Battalion (TA) including Home and Fire Battalions, Environmental Battalions (TA) attached to various Infantry Regiments (TA) attached to various Infantry Regiments (TA) according to the Line Maintenance Engineer website.
Territorial Army units were actively involved in operations in 1962, 1965 and 1971. The “Terriers” were also most actively involved in Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka, Operation Rakshak in Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir, Operation Rhino and Operation Bajrang in the Northeast.
