In times when women are finally somewhat getting the place they deserve in the Indian Army, the Central government has told the Supreme Court that it cannot appoint women at commanding positions because it would be tough for the troops to accept them.
A report from Times of India, reported it as saying:
The composition of rank and file being male, and predominantly drawn from rural background, with prevailing societal norms, the troops are not yet mentally schooled to accept women officers in command.
It was also argued that women won’t be able to cope with the ‘hazards of the service’ – like transfers etc – because of family obligations and pregnancy breaks.
While further adding that the ‘physical capacity of women officers remains a challenge’ because of ‘inherent physiological differences between men and women’.
The officers are expected to lead their men from the front and need to be in prime physical condition to undertake combat tasks. Inherent physiological differences between men and women preclude equal physical performance resulting in lower physical standards and hence the physical capacity of women officers remains a challenge for command of units.
In conclusion, the Center told the Supreme Court, it would be a matter of immense stress if any of the women officers are taken PoW and that is a problem which can be avoided by limiting their numbers in direct combat units.
These opinions did not go down well with people on Twitter, and here are some of their reactions: