An Officer, A Lady And Now An Author

Life in a military training academy is replete with adventures of all kinds. Some of these stories are often reminisced and relived; some in memories, some while old army buddies get together and some in the form of books like the one just published by ex-army officer Bhavna Chauhan. Bhavna, is an alumnus of OTA, Chennai having completed her course in 2001 and served in the army till family scored over a career in the forces.

Life of the LC's ( lady cadets) in the academy and their various escapades and experiences is what the book is based on. A sequel to the book is on the cards too. For a peek into the life of a lady cadet in OTA , grab your copy of Bhavna's ' Where Girls Dare'.

Breaking Boundaries

On the one hand you have women soldiers scaling new peaks of success and achievement and striving to match steps with their male counterparts. Unfortunately, on the other you have those who are breaking boundaries in the more infamous areas, the more recent of them being Maj Dimple Singla of The JAG branch. Maj Singla is facing a charge of corruption , rather uncommon among the female force in the forces so far among various other charges as well. She has now been placed under arrest after having absconded for a while and will reappear before the GCM. Maj Dimple Singla has been accused of accepting bribes from various accused personnel facing court martials and acting in their favour during the discplinary proceedings.

With women completing almost 17 years in forces, such odd incidents with a few stepping out of the line should not really be hitting headlines but since it concerns a woman soldier, still a novelty in the forces despite having been around for sometime, it does manage to become news.

Not Just Any Chicken Soup

A chance visit to Crossword found me strolling through the section offering books on discount. I found this one at the bottom of a pile, obviously not a popular choice for many despite having the discount tag, not even due to the seasonal surge of patriotism some people experience when national events such as the Republic Day are celebrated. Maybe its just the fraternal instinct that prompts me to home in on anything that concerns the armed forces that found me heading to the billing counter with ' Chicken Soup for the Indian Armed Forces Soul' in hand. Till yesterday, I was not even aware that there was such a book in the 'Chicken Soup' series.

The next couple of days will be spent going through 101 stories of courage,endurance,perseverance,humour and pain. No matter how many you come across you never tire of hearing about them.

Project Braveheart - An E-book

All of us have a story to tell. Why don't we compile it in a book for everyone to read? Here's your chance to get published and even earn a token amount towards contributing to our literary effort called Project Braveheart...Join the team!

Read more about it here:

http://helpline4indianarmywives.ning.com/group/projectbravehearts

Calling Guest Bloggers

As much as I'd like to I somehow do not manage to find the time to add value and content to this blog. I would like to invite anyone who thinks they will be able to help me manage it and continue to provide readers with information and updates on life in the armed forces as the better half.

Down But Definitely Not Out

Source: Trak.in News

Deepa Malik, who is competing in the 11th edition of what is arguably the world’s highest and toughest motor rally – the Maruti Suzuki Raid-de-Himalaya – is a participant with a difference, being a paraplegic.

Suffering from a repetitive spinal cord tumor, Deepa lost the use of her legs after three surgeries that rendered her a paraplegic in 1999. Overcoming her more than 75 percent physical disability, the 40-year-old Malik, the wife of a retired Army officer, is all set to conquer the Himalayas with her grit and determination.

‘I am navigating for three-time Raid winner (Adventure Trial category) Rakesh Diwan, who is a motivational force for me. He even taught me the skills of a good navigator. I studied a lot about the route of the rally,’ Malik told IANS. ‘This is one of the world’s toughest motor sport rallies and my disability can’t stop me. I want to change the social outlook and mindset of society by participating in such adventurous events,’ she added.

‘My paralysis failed to dampen my spirits. My passion for travelling and doing adventurous things is as strong as ever. I want to overcome difficulties, not just for myself but for people suffering from similar diseases,’ Malik maintained. She won asilver in the backstroke swimming competition at the Far East and South Pacific Games (FESPIC) held in Kuala Lumpur in 2007. She also participated in the javelin throw event.

‘Now I am preparing to participate in the World (Wheelchair and Amputee Games) to held in Bangalore next month,’ Malik said. ‘I have also registered my name twice in the Limca Book of Records for crossing a 1-km stretch of the Yamuna river against the current in 2008 and covering 58 kms by riding a special bike this year,’ she added.

Manjeev Bhalla, one of the organisers of the Raid, said a physically challenged was participating for the first time. ‘From the next time, we will encourage other such people to participate in the event,’ he said. Automobile major Maruti Suzuki has sponsored Malik for the rally. The 2,000-km rally route is tough and the pressure on the participants is extreme as it passes through the hostile terrain of the cold deserts of Lahaul and Spiti and Ladakh districts. There are 108 vehicles participating in the X-treme Four-Wheeler, X-treme Two-Wheeler and Adventure Trail categories.

The Raid-de-Himalaya is the only Asian motor sport event listed on the off-road rallies calendar of the Switzerland-based FIM (Federation Internationale Motorcyclisme), which captures the attention of the international rallying circuit as well.

New Freelance Jobs Added On The Forum

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Capt Poonam Kaur Dismissed From Service

A quick reference to this incident :

http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/army-sacks-woman-officer-for-false-harassment-charges/488224/

Hope to elaborate on this when I have time to spare.

An Officer's Career & AWWA - What's The Connection Here ? - Part 2

A follow - up on the post below which was published on this blog earlier

http://braveheartbetterhalves.blogspot.com/2009/07/acrs-awwa-whats-connection-here.html

It looks like the skeleton's in the AWWA closet are slowly popping out.

The Deccan Chronicle Chandigarh edition dated 6th July..carried this story of another army wife alleging harrassment in the name of welfare activities.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/national/another-army-wife-alleges-%E2%80%98harassment%E2%80%99-022

An Officer's Career & AWWA - What's The Connection Here ?

Vikas Kohal has a story to tell in Mail Today about how an army wife is taking a Colonel to court for poor remarks in her husband’s ACR .

Another woman has cried war against the Indian Army top brass.

And this time around, the allegations are of ‘ spouse- harassment’. An Army officer’s wife has decided to take legal action against her husband’s bosses for tarnishing his professional record. Savneet Paul says her husband Major P. S. Paul was targeted because of her refusal to work with the Army Wives Welfare Association ( AWWA).

A legal notice has been sent to Colonel D. S. Loomba and his wife Meenu. Loomba was the commanding officer ( CO) of Meerut’s 67 Engineer Regiment from January 4, 2008, to January 1, 2009. Major Paul had served the regiment during this period. Savneet has accused Loomba of making adverse remarks in her husband’s annual confidential report ( ACR) because of her nonparticipation in the AWWA activities. She has granted the authorities a month’s time to withdraw the remarks and apologise.

She said Colonel Loomba had ridiculed her husband “ on record” on the basis of the “ couple’s performance”. Paul’s ACR states: “ On the social front, including AWWA activities, the couple’s performance was found to be below average.” Guneet Chaudhary, Savneet’s Chandigarh- based lawyer, said her client was victimised by her husband’s superiors. Savneet said she could not follow the ‘ orders’ issued by the CO’s wife since she was pregnant.

Trouble started when Savneet, a resident of Patiala in Punjab, joined Paul in Meerut.
Meenu introduced her to AWWA activities saying it was an NGO. But the CO’s wife often “ forced” the officers’ wives to work for AWWA, she alleged. When Savneet sought to be excused on the grounds of pregnancy, Meenu allegedly threatened her with an adverse effect on Paul’s career prospects.

The Colonel also allegedly asked his wife to “ socially outcast” her from the regiment’s affairs.
Chaudhary said the Army had declared under oath that the AWWA does not have any connection with its functioning. If that was the case, how Paul’s ACR could mention the couple’s AWWA activities, she wondered. Attempts to contact Colonel Loomba went futile. Officials at the Army’s Eastern Command, where he is posted now, refused to comment saying Loomba was away from Dimapur.

Chaudhary said Savneet’s was not an individual case. Lawyers keep getting similar complaints from many officers’ wives, she claimed. Another woman wanted to take legal action against the Army authorities for harassing her. She says she was pregnant when her husband was ordered to stay with the company in Siliguri. She wanted to go with her husband.

Chaudhary read out the email: “ When I informed the CO’s wife about my decision, she verbally abused me. The CO then called up my husband and asked him to leave me behind. We refused. It was impossible for me to manage a one- year- old child alone in the third month of pregnancy. After that, the drunken CO would call every night, threatening my husband to spoil his ACR. After three months, my husband put in his papers. But the CO did not forward the papers to his seniors.” She took up the matter with the defence ministry and the Army chief. The commander’s wife assured her some reprieve through AWWA. But nothing happened and her husband was transferred to another station.

“ Since AWWA had done nothing for me, I did not participate in its activities. The CO’s wife then threatened to spoil my husband’s ACR,” the mail goes on. The woman went on to say she had made an MMS of the “ harassment in the name of welfare”.