Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 10

Months after the Supreme Court (SC) told the Army that all women short service commissioned (SSC) officers have to be considered for permanent commission (PC), the Army’s process has raised several new questions.

The latest is the issue of how women SSC officers, who have completed 14 years of service, will clear a selection board, including medical fitness parameters alongside men and women officers, who have completed 10 years of service.

In other words, these women SSC officers will be competing for same posts with colleagues who are younger and would be expectedly more fit. They have appealed against the decision highlighting what they call as unjust testing parameters and sought some relaxations to bring them at par with their younger counterparts.

In due course, this selection board, called SB-5 in military parlance, and its associated physical parameters include those who completed 10 years of service. However, since there was no provision for grant of permanent commission to women SSC officers, they were never made part of such a selection process.

Recruitment Process raises new questions

The physical parameters for the women SSC officers, who have completed 14 years of service and those with 10-year service, are same. Concerns are being raised as younger officers, competing for same posts, are expectedly more fit.