Cadets passing out of OTA will be graduating to new challenges

Ahead of the much-awaited event, a proud Major General VD Chowgule, Deputy Commandant and Chief Instructor of OTA, noted that the institution has been the cradle of leadership, producing good leaders to serve the Indian Army. 

Chief instructor Chowgule said that the course module, which focusses on transforming into a military lifestyle, is similar for both gentlemen and lady cadets. “For instance, both the gentlemen and lady cadets must do the 40-km run but the timings within which they have to complete that will differ. 

This year, we had three foreign lady cadets from Bhutan and 19 foreign gentleman cadets, who are predominantly from Afghanistan, Tajikistan and Fiji,” he said. In addition to the regular course, a special training course for lady officers of Afghan National Army was recently held for the first time. The cadets showcased various drills at the tactical training area. OTA Chennai, which has a training capacity of 750 cadets, is the only training institution of the Indian Army which trains women officers, starting from September 1992 under the Women Special Entry Scheme (WSES), which was replaced by the Short Service Commission (Women) or SSC (W) in March 2008, bringing it on par with the gentleman cadets. 

Commenting on women officers’ role in the army, Major General Chowgule said, “Combat has many connotations. In combat arms, there is no role envisaged for women officers but for combat support arms (engineers and signals for example), there are roles which lady officers are instructed to fulfil. When these numbers increase, we are ready to provide training.” 

To enhance its reputation as a world class academy, infrastructural additions are being made. “We have been on an infrastructure development spree for the last decade – 90% of infrastructure required for a world class academy is already in place. There is accommodation for each cadet in addition to halls, drill square and other facilities. We are currently constructing an Olympic-sized swimming pool and a bridge across the Adyar River, connecting the academy to the training area on the other side of the river,” concluded the major general, adding that the ultimate aim of the academy is to produce good leaders for the defence of the country.