The Indian Army has deployed ‘rifle women’ from Assam Rifles along the Line of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir on national security duty.
Army for the first time has deployed women soldiers for internal security and combat duties. Around 30 women soldiers are led by Captain Gursimran Kaur of the Army Service Corps (ASC), who herself is a third-generation military officer of her family.
“Army had a long-standing demand of the female soldiers for security duties where gender sensitivities are involved.” added an officer.
The sites are in the areas like Tangdhar, Uri, Keran where women can be frisked whenever necessitated. These women soldiers in north Kashmir near the LoC will be assigned duties like security duties, sentry, manning check posts, frisking and guard duty.
As of Jan 2019, 3.89 per cent of the army personnel comprised women, while 6.7 per cent of the navy and 13.28 per cent of the air force personnel were women as of June 2019.
