Defence exam: Six women officers clear defence staff course for the first time

For the first time, six women officers have cleared the prestigious Defence Services Staff Course (DSSC) and Defence Services Technical Staff Course (DSTSC) exam, which is held every September, officials said on Thursday. Four of these officers will undergo a one-year course at Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, Tamil Nadu, alongside their male counterparts from all three services, they said.

The women officers will be imparted training and orientation on operational, military intelligence, operational logistics and administrative aspects of staff appointments. The prestigious Staff Course gives adequate weightage while being considered for command appointments, they said. Among the remaining two women officers, one is on the reserve list for Defence Services Technical Staff Course and the other is shortlisted for Administration and Logistics Management Course (ALMC)/Intelligence Staff Course (ISC), the officials said.

More than 1,500 officers of the Indian Army appear in the DSSC/DSTSC entrance exam, the army said. This year, for the first time, 22 women officers of the army (from the Army Service Corps, Army Air Defence, Army Ordnance Corps, Corps of Signals, Corps of Intelligence, Corps of Engineers and Corps of EME), who have been granted Permanent Commission in the respective arms and services, appeared in the exam, the officials said.

Officers, subsequent to passing the entrance exam, are nominated to attend the course based on merit which includes service profile and discipline as well. "Out of four women officers nominated for DSSC, one is the spouse of an officer who has also cleared the DSSC exam, thereby making history of being the first couple from the army to attend the course together at Wellington," an official said. This milestone bears testimony to the transformation of the armed forces towards gender equality and women's empowerment, the official added.