ITBP inducts its first women officers in combat
Mussoorie, Aug 8: The India-China LAC guarding the Indo-Tibetan Border Police force on Sunday commissioned its first two women officers in combat after they completed their training here.
A total of 53 officers passed out from the ITBP officers' training academy located in Mussoorie after a passing out parade was held, with Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami officiating as the chief guest.
A first-ever 'History of ITBP' book with 680-pages containing many unknown facts and photographs of the border guarding force was also released by Dhami along with ITBP director general S S Deswal.
Dhami and Deswal put the ranks of Assistant Commandant, the entry-level officer rank in the paramilitary, on the shoulders of the two women officers--Prakriti and Diksha--after the passing out parade and attestation ceremony where they took oath to serve the country.
While Prakriti's father has retired from the Indian Air Force (IAF), Deeksha's father Kamlesh Kumar is an Inspector in the ITBP.
Kumar, in his Khaki uniform, saluted his daughter after the parade and got a crisp salute in return following which they hugged each other.
"My father is my role model. He never considered me lesser than anyone," Deeksha said.
Prakriti, who holds a bachelors degree in electrical engineering, said the life in the force is "very tough but it is also challenging and exciting".
The ITBP started recruiting women combat officers in its cadre from 2016 through an all-India examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
Before this, it only had combat women in the constabulary ranks.
Out of the total 53 officers, 42 officers are in the general duty combat cadre, while 11 are in the engineering cadre of the about 90,000 personnel strong mountain warfare trained force.
These officers will now be posted across ITBP formations in the country, including the LAC with China and the anti-Naxal operations theatre in Chhattisgarh.
The force was raised in the aftermath of the 1962 Chinese aggression and its primary role is to guard the 3,488 km long India-China Line of Actual Control (LAC) apart from rendering a variety of roles in the internal security domain.
Addressing the young officers who trained for 50 weeks (general duty cadre) and 11 weeks (engineering cadre) in various subjects of combat and strategy, Dhami said the commanders should "give their best" while performing their duties.
He said the country was safe due to the valour of its armed forces and the sacrifices made by the personnel in uniform.
"I am the son of a soldier and I have seen the Army closely. I have seen the struggles of their families," he said while congratulating the young officers who he said were taking their "first step for serving the nation".
The CM also lauded the force for bringing out its first-ever history book, that has some 1,000 unseen operational photographs starting from the period when the Union government was planning to raise it.
"The book has been published in view of making a reference volume for factual history and knowledge of the force to the officers and jawans. It will also be useful for the administrative and training purposes and for gaining in-depth details and is the official history of the force," ITBP spokesperson Vivek Kumar Pandey said.
Pandey has himself been instrumental in bringing out the book after years of research and talking to serving and retired officers and others who were closely involved with the creation of the force that specialises in mountain warfare.
"There was no such book on the ITBP available till this publication. It contains historical achievements of the force since its inception," Pandey, a second-in-command rank officer, said.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami during the Rank ceremony at ITBP Academy in Mussoorie on Sunday. For the first time, two women officers joined the ITBP in combat after the completion of their training | Photo Credit: PTI
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Strict security measures in place in Mumbai for Messi's events at 2 venues Dec 14, say police
Mumbai (PTI): In view of Argentine superstar footballer Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai on Sunday, the city police are implementing stringent security measures, like not allowing water bottles, metals, coins inside the stadiums and setting up watchtowers to keep an eye on the crowd, officials said.
The police also said taking extra care to avoid any stampede-like situation and to prevent recurrence of the chaotic situation that unfolded in Kolkata during Messi's visit on Saturday as thousands of fans protested inside the Salt Lake stadium here after failing to catch a clear glimpse of the football icon despite paying hefty sums for tickets.
Messi is expected to be present at the Cricket Club of India (Brabourne Stadium) in Mumbai on Sunday for a Padel GOAT Cup event followed by attending a celebrity football match. He is expected to proceed to the Wankhede Stadium for the GOAT India Tour main event around 5 pm.
"In view of Lionel Messi's visit to Mumbai, the police are geared up and have put in place a high level of security arrangements in and around the stadiums located in south Mumbai. Considering the chaos that prevailed in Kolkata and the security breach, we have deployed World Cup-level security arrangements at Brabourne and Wankhede stadiums," an official said.
Expecting heavy crowd near the stadiums during Messi's visit, the city police force has deployed more than 2,000 of its personnel near and around both the venues, he said.
As the Mumbai police have the experience of security 'bandobast' during the victory parade of ICC World Cup-winning Indian team and World Cup final match at the Wankhede Stadium, in which over one lakh cricket fans had gathered, we are prepared to handle a large crowd of fans, he said.
"We are trying to avoid the errors that occurred in the past," the official said.
There is no place to sneak inside the stadiums in Mumbai like the Kolkata stadium, according to him.
The police are also asking the organisers to provide all the required facilities to the fans inside the stadium, so that there will be no chaos, he said, adding the spectators have purchased tickets in the range of Rs 5,000 to 25,000. After paying so much of amount, any spectator expects proper services, while enjoying the event, he said.
The police are expecting 33,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium and over 4,000 at Brabourne Stadium. Besides this, more than 30,000 people are expected outside and around the stadiums just to have a glimpse of the football sensation, he said.
The organisers responsible for Messi's India visit recently came to Mumbai to discuss security arrangements. During the meeting, the Mumbai police asked them not to take the event lightly, according to the official.
After those requirements were fulfilled, the final security deployment was chalked out, he said.
Police has the standard procedure of the security arrangements inside the Wankhede Stadium, where people are barred from taking water bottles, metals objects, coins. Police are setting up watch towers near the stadiums and there will be traffic diversions, so that there is maximum space available to stand, according to the official.
Police are also appealing to the spectators to use public transport service for commuting and avoid personal vehicles to reach south Mumbai.
To avoid any stampede-like situation, police are also taking precautionary measures and will stop the fans some distance ahead of the stadium and public announcement systems will be used to guide the crowd. Barricades will be placed at various places to manage the crowd.
In case the crowd swells up beyond expectation, the police will divert people to other grounds and preparations in this regard underway, he said.
Additional police force has been deployed in south Mumbai to tackle any kind of situation, he said.
