For the first time in the history of the Indian Army, a woman officer will be leading an Army contingent in the 71^st Army Day parade to be held on January 15, 2019.

The Rising day, as it is called, is celebrated in recognition of Field Marshal Kodandera M. Cariappa’s (then a Lieutenant General) taking over as the first Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army from General Sir Francis Butcher, the last British Commander-in-Chief of India, on January 1949. It is also marked important as it salutes the courageous soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect the country and its citizens.

Lieutenant Bhavana Kasturi joined the officers training academy in October 2015 after clearing the NCC 38 special entry with AIR-4.

With much effort, the practice for the parade has been going on and Kasturi shared, “Our center is in Bangalore and I’m coming from our regimental center and it’s been six months we are practicing. Along with me, there are two male officers from the center are practicing as contingent commanders.”

It has been an incredible initiative by the Indian Armed Forces to bring forward the women officers who work equally hard to serve the nation and Lieutenant Bhavana Kasturi will be leading the Indian Army Services Corps (ASC) Contingent that handles the logistic support function of the Army and it comprises of 144 jawans. The ASC is participating after a gap of 23 years.

Talking about the refreshing change in the customs of Indian Army, Kasturi shared, “This shows the kind of acceptance, the change and the evolutions which is happening in the entire organization. This shows acceptance for women officers also. The higher authority in the Army is working hard for it and they are also recognizing the efforts being put by the lady officers.”

Previously on Republic Day in 2015, we witnessed lady officers from the tri-services leading their contingents with 148 personnel, each drawn from the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy. It was led by Sub-Inspector Stanzin Noryang from Ladakh and the team comprised of a diverse mix of daring women from all the states in the country.

Pic Source: India Today

H/T: The Pioneer