Women and National Defense- Challenges, Triumphs and Male Response

Abstract

The present study has been focused on the induction of women in the armed forces which has been highly skewed and shallow. This has been based on an issue that critically affects the fighting potential of the armed forces, providing fundamental right of equality of sexes and also leading to women’s liberation. Many ill-informed observers have trifled such a sensitive matter by terming it as ‘conquering the last male bastion’. This is an issue of great contradiction where many stances have been taken more on the basis of personal views and mind-sets rather than on well evolved logic. The women have always been considered to be subordinate to men in every society of world. For Starting, this issue needs to be stressed that the services carry no male chauvinistic mindset. This is well known fact that fact that daughters of our country have excelled in all fields from the times immemorial and that higher class persons do not suffer from any gender bias and are very supportive of women’s advancement. However, the issue of women’s induction in the services warrants singular treatment. However, there are also the instances of narrow mindsets for the induction of women in armed forces. In the recent past, everyone was shocked on hearing a retired senior Army officer who recommended the constitution of all women battalions in the Indian Army. There cannot be a more preposterous and perilous proposition. Many organizations including various industries and large companies do not show gender bias in this age of development. Often we go across the news of hearing a number of American women soldiers fighting in war in Iraq and Afghanistan fights against militants. This is not equally true and acceptable in India’s stance against allowing women to join armed forces. The present study is an endeavour to remove some common misconceptions and put all issues in their proper perspective.

Key words: National defense; women rights; equality; harassment; social status ets.