If women can’t lead men in wars, let there be all-women combat units, says Parrikar

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has once again stirred the much talked about debate on the role of women in combat duties, by saying that there could be all-women battalions in the army, and in the times of wars, women officers could also join the missions actively.

This is the strongest endorsement yet from the political setup when it comes to a more active involvement of women in the armed forces.

"In combat roles also there can be women. Why not have a complete women team, battalion of women. So the question of women officers leading a men's team, if there is question of initial resistance to it, can also be taken care of," the minister said while speaking at a FICCI event in New Delhi.

However, he acknowledging the fact that this idea, of women officers leading combat teams, is a sensitive issue within the armed forces, which is why it took the forces nearly four months to prepare a report on the subject, even after Parrikar had clearly given his instructions on the matter.

To take a final decision, he would soon be meeting the chiefs of all three armed forces, viz. Army, Navy and Air Force.

Talking of his idea of deploying women officers on submarines, he said, "I don't understand why we can't place women on ships. At this stage I will not support a submarine operation be cause (of the way) submarines are designed. But ships can be modified and new ships can be designed to have facilities for women."


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