HT
A woman officer, Group Captain Shaliza Dhami, will on Sunday command the Indian Air Force Day parade for the first time at air force station Bamrauli in Prayagraj to mark the service’s 91st anniversary, officials aware of the matter said.
A helicopter pilot, Dhami was also the first woman to assume command of a frontline IAF combat unit in March. She heads a missile squadron in the western sector. Commissioned into the IAF in 2003, Dhami is a qualified flying instructor and has logged more than 2,800 hours of flying.
The development comes at a time when the armed forces are opening more frontiers for women and giving them opportunities on a par with their male counterparts.
“Also for the first time, the parade will have an all-women contingent consisting of the newly inducted Agniveer Vayu, who shall march shoulder to shoulder with their male counterparts. The parade also includes a flight of Garud commandos for the first time,” IAF spokesperson Wing Commander Ashish Moghe said on Sunday.
