Girls Can Appear For NDA Pune Entrance Exam From March 2022: Centre To Supreme Court
New Delhi/Pune, 21st September 2021: The National Defence Academy (NDA) in Pune is being prepared for the admission of girls. Girls can appear in the NDA entrance exam from May 2022. The Central Government gave this information to the Supreme Court today.
The court has termed the existing system of admission as discriminatory as only boys are eligible for admission in the only tri-services academy of the Indian Armed Forces.
The Central Government has presented 24 details of preparations for the admission of girls to NDA in the Supreme Court. The government has filed an additional affidavit in the court giving details of preparations for the admission of female cadets in NDA.
The government is in the process of setting proper medical and physical fitness standards. Along with this, the necessary infrastructure is being created. The separation between male and female residential areas is also being arranged.
The government also said that along with physical training, it would not be right to dilute the rules on service subjects like firing, endurance training, fieldcraft, and off ground. This will have an impact on the combat capability of the armed forces.
The court was informed that only medically fit candidates who fulfil the selection parameters will be allowed admission. Parameters exist for male cadets. The process of preparing proper standards for women is in progress. In this, rules are being made keeping in mind the age and nature of training.
The government submitted to the court that there were no parallel parameters of physical fitness for women candidates so far. Therefore, these are also being prepared. Much analysis is needed on this issue. It also requires expert inputs to maintain operational readiness.
The government also said that before inducting female cadets, it would also have to include gynaecologists, sports medicine experts, counsellors, nursing staff, and female attendants.
A study group has been constituted to fulfil all these things. It includes experts to rapidly prepare the comprehensive curriculum of women cadets in NDA.
Earlier this month, the government had responded to an interim order of the Supreme Court in August. It was related to women appearing in the NDA entrance exam. It encouraged the government and the armed forces to act on their own rather than by court orders.
The court also made an important observation regarding this, saying that there is a mentality problem and gender discrimination when it comes to equal service opportunities for men and women in the armed forces of the country.
The court was responding to a plea that argued that the explicit exclusion of eligible women candidates from the NDA was unconstitutional and was done purely on the basis of gender.
