Army women exhibit mettle, win praise

Bolarum: Six Army women officers from the Corps of Mechanical Engineers have concluded their expedition after reaching Military College of Electronics & Mechanical Engineering (MCEME) here. They have undertaken 1,700 km motorcycle expedition from 3EME Centre Bhopal on November 28. Traversing through Mhow, Vadodara, Mumbai, Pune and Sholapur as part of the Naari Shakti motorcycle expedition to spread the message of ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ and to motivate young girls to join the armed forces, the six officers stopped at several schools, colleges, universities, colonies, slums and interacted with communities.

Lt Col Manmeet Kaur, who led the team, said, “On an average, the team travelled 300-400 km every day and braved all kinds of weather conditions and undulating terrain. The best part was the welcome they received at Pune University and in almost every place they stopped.” Lt Gen Paramjit Singh, VSM, Commandant of MCEME, said, “The aim of the expedition was to spread awareness on women’s empowerment and to inspire youth to join the armed forces. The six women officers did a commendable job.” The chief guest, actress Amala Akkineni said, “The expedition shows what women can do and the expedition hopefully would have inspired women in rural India as the officers interacted with them and several communities.