NDA To Admit the First 19 Girl Cadets, Training Will be done in a Gender-Neutral Way

The National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakwasla near Pune is gearing up to train the first batch of female cadets with effect from June 2022

The National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakwasla near Pune is gearing up to train the first batch of female cadets with effect from June 2022, the ministry of defence said in a release. And as part of the preparation, NDA has decided on training activities keeping in mind the employability of the female cadets.

The prestigious tri-services military training institute of the country (NDA) will admit the first batch of female cadets to a total of 19 vacancies; 10 for the army, six for the air force, and three for the navy as allotted by the respective service headquarters.

“Akin to their male counterparts, females in the age group of 16½ to 19 years will undergo three years of military training after successfully clearing the UPSC NDA written exam, services selection board (SSB) interviews and medicals.”

“With minimum changes to the existing curriculum, the training in academics, drill, outdoor training etc. will be conducted in an absolutely gender-neutral manner,” said the release. “However, owing to physiological differences between male and female cadets, the aspect of physical training may entail certain changes with respect to female cadets.”

Dedicated support staff will be provided for facilitating the training of female cadets. “A majority of training activities will be conducted jointly keeping their employability in mind, wherein female officers are required to command the troops of men,” stated the release. Similar training methodology already exists in other pre-commissioning training institutes like OTA Chennai, INA Ezhimala and AFA Hyderabad.

“For the stay of female cadets, one of the squadrons has been identified and is being refurbished with amenities and requirements specific for their training. At the same time, actions are underway to augment the existing infrastructure while requisite modifications will also be undertaken to conform to gender-specific lifestyle requirements. Whereas in the long term, a separate squadron is being envisaged exclusively for women cadets,” stated the release.

-Staff Reporter