'Prepare your daughters for challenges'

Like every other woman who faced brickbats for the career she chose, D Roopa Moudgil, Inspector-General of Police, Home Guards & Civil Defence and a noted personality from Davangere, also had some sour experiences in her career.

On Sunday, while delivering the keynote address at the Women’s Leadership Summit 2019 at the Indian Institute of Management, she said she promptly responded to one of her male batchmates who tried to mock her down with unreasonable gender discrimination. “My batchmate, who was part of my training academy, once asked why did you girls pick up civil services? What do you think you will be able to do? To this, I asked him, What have men done all these years?” said Roopa.

“Not just that. Many men think that girls study well, pass exams easily, and gain seats wherever they want but lack practical knowledge. This happened in my case as well,” she added.

She stressed that parents should not overprotect their daughters and instead prepare them to face any challenges that life throws in their way.

Tessy Thomas, Director General of Aeronautical Systems, Defence Research and Development Organisation, said that emotional intelligence was a key factor for women to turn into technology leaders.

‘Become leaders’

“Scientists should learn during every minute of their lives. We should master the past and current technologies and get the ideas on technology trends in the market. We should turn ourselves into leaders so that we can lead, influence, command and guide our followers or other people,” she added.

She continued: “Women scientists should maintain the emotional intelligence that helps them deal with every situation confidently, and defy the problems that come their way. It also helps to understand others and respond in an appropriate way.”

Explaining the role of a leader, she said that former President, the Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, was an excellent leader and her mentor.

She said: “When medium-range ballistic missile Agni 1 was being shaped, I was part of the group. Kalam mentored the entire group so well. He created a culture of excellence and leadership among us.”