About two lakh girls from across the country have appeared in the admission test of the National Defence Academy (NDA), Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Wednesday, after inaugurating the three-day ‘Rashtra Raksha Samparpan Parv’ at Jhansi in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, while stating that all closed doors in the military are now being opened for women and there is increased participation of women in all the three Services.
As part of the Parv, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to formally launch several defence-related schemes in a grand ceremony being organised in the precincts of the Jhansi fort on November 19.
Stating that bolstering the national security apparatus is of paramount importance to the Government, Mr. Singh said, “Our country is facing many types of conventional and non-conventional challenges — from border threats to sub-conventional threats like terror and extremism. There is a need to create a strong, modern and well-equipped military, along with an equally capable, vibrant and self-reliant defence industry, which can provide low-cost yet top-quality equipment to our forces in a time-bound manner.”
Terming the recent decision of the Army to grant Permanent Commission to eligible women officers as a great example of women’s empowerment, Mr. Singh said that in addition to opening the NDA for women, girls are also now being given admission in Sainik Schools.
The events are part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahaotsav celebrations, the Defence Ministry said.
Recalling the advisory issued to all the States when he was the Home Minister that women should have been given 33% representation in the security forces, Mr. Singh said that circumstances had changed and women’s participation has increased in all the police and paramilitary forces.
In addition to announcing defence-related schemes, Mr. Modi will handover the indigenous Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) to the Air Force; drones built by start-ups to the Army; and electronic warfare suites to the Navy, in Jhansi.
