New Delhi: A top Indian Army commander expressed concerns over the conduct of some women Commanding Officers (COs) and also suugested a comprehensive policy on “gender neutrality” in the Army. In his review letter, he raised “ego issues”, “lack of empathy” and their “my way or highway” approach of some women COs. Earlier this month, Lt General Rajeev Puri completed his tenure as the commander of the China-specific 17 ‘Brahmastra’ Mountain Strike Corps at Panagarh.
Lt Gen Puri mentioned all his concerns regarding women COs in his feedback letter to the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Command Lt Gen Ram Chander Tiwari.
In the letter, dated October 1, the Army commander stressed on the need for gender neutrality in COs' postings. "Gender equality and gender neutrality are two similar yet diverse aspects of human resource management. While gender equality primarily translates to providing equal opportunity for all genders, gender neutrality lays emphasis on equality in dealing and progression irrespective of gender," Lt Gen Puri stated.
Notably, after a Supreme Court's order last year, 108 women officers were given command roles outside the medical stream in the Indian Army.
Key Observations In The Letter:
Interpersonal Relations: The top Army commander said that there was an increase in interpersonal relations in the units commanded by women COs. “During the last one yr, there has been an increase in the No of offr management issues in units commanded by Women offrs. These are indicative of serious concerns regarding interpersonal relations. Most cases pertains to lack of tact and understanding of personal requirement of unit personnel, especially offrs. The emphasis is more on conflict termination through might, rather than conflict resolution through mutual respect,” he stated.
An Exaggerated Tendency to Complain: Lt Gen Puri said that women COs had exhibited an “exaggerated tendency to complain” to senior commanders rather than exercising their own authority. He termed these issues “ego problems” of women COs. “On the other hand, when enquired, the subordinates have pointed towards HR mgt issues. These issues start with mundane ego problems and spiral out of control in most cases. Such mundane cases are seldom reported by male counterparts when commanding units. This is indicative of a predisposition to lean on the hierarchy as soon as an adverse sit develops,” he stated.
Misplaced Sense of Entitlement: Lt Gen Puri’s letter mentioned an instance where a women CO “insisted” a Junior commissioned officer to open door of her vehicle on her arrival in the unit, “contrary to orders on the subject”. ” In another incident, a woman CO specifically directed that an individual be sent to open the gate of her house at 0600 hrs when she would go out for a walk,” he mentioned in the letter.
Lack of Empathy: Lt Gen Puri highlighted that there is a “lack of empathy” in women officers. “The lack of empathy may be attributable to a need to overcompensate since they perceive that any sign of compassion may be indicative of a gender trait c being soft in their dealings,” he stated.
Over Exerting Command and Centralised Decision Making: Women COs have been found to centralise decision making thereby not adhering to directive style of Command, the letter stated. There is a lack of consultative approach in day to day affairs of the units. There seems to be an inability or lack of concern for effective communication and establishment of trust. The approach, as indicated in some cases is a ‘my way or highway’ kind of approach.
Low Tolerance to Ambiguity: “At the level of Coy Cdrs/ Pl cdrs orders are explicit and need to be followed in letter and spirit. However, as a CO, orders received from higher HQ (directly from GOC of a Div or Corps) are more in terms of gen instructions whose essence and logic is required to be understood and CO’s discretion is necessary while implementing them. All orders are not uniformly applicable to all units in all circumstances. However, a gen inclination to ruthlessly implement these instructions neglecting the unique requirements of personnel of their units, leads to an imbalance in exec of orders,” the letter read.
Not Trained to be Commanders: Lt Gen Puri stated that women officers were not trained or groomed to be COs.
Remedial Mesaures suggested by Lt Gen Puri:
- A comprehensive policy on gender neutrality should be issued.
- Policy on spouse coordination postings be reviewed.