At MoD, good start on gender, reforms

As India’s first full-time woman Defence minister, Nirmala Sitharaman had her task cut out from day one. And she has started by relaying the right signals. She had described her elevation to Cabinet rank with the charge of Defence as a “big message” to the world that India will “never stop promoting women”. Her first step after taking charge was to push the pedal on the reforms initiated by her predecessor, some of them towards projecting a more gender-friendly image of an institution that has traditionally been a male bastion. She has taken charge in the wake of the Indian Air Force commissioning its first women fighter pilots. One of the first announcements to come out since she took charge was the proposal to induct 800 women into military police.

Coincidentally, last week, the Indian Navy sent out an all-women team to circumnavigate the world on a sail boat. With a woman at the helm, women are set to break many other gender barriers in the armed forces, starting with their inclusion in combat roles in the Army, which has finally agreed to lift that barrier.

Some of the recommendations of the Shekatkar Committee on reforms in the armed forces, formed by her predecessor Manohar Parrikar, were accepted by Arun Jaitley who had assumed additional charge of the ministry in the interim. Those internal to the Army are being implemented now, and Sitharaman must ensure that there is no let-up in this. The changes introduced in the working of the Defence ministry during her first 10 days in office indicate that she means business. She will hold daily meetings with all three service chiefs and the Defence secretary to ensure quick decision-making. The meetings of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the highest decision-making body on military procurement, will now be held every fortnight instead of once a month to step up the pace of military procurement.

Sitharaman had displayed a methodical approach, perseverance, and capacity for hard work as Commerce minister. The same attributes when brought to bear upon the Defence ministry will undoubtedly help her spruce up the battle-readiness of the armed forces. Her real task, however, will be to synergise the operation of the three services, restructure the Ministry of Defence and fast-track India’s move towards self-reliance through indigenisation of weapon systems. The reforms initiated by Parrikar amount to a new paradigm and require that the remaining recommendations of the Shekatkar Committee are accepted and implemented without delay or procrastination. Hopefully, a minister whose sole responsibility is the running of the Defence ministry will do exactly that.