About 12 thousand women are working in Indian defence forces
About twelve thousand women personnel are working in all three wings of Indian defence this information was given by Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Ajay Bhatt in a written reply to Smt Vandana Chavan in Rajya Sabha on March .
The MOS Bhatt said that The combat employment philosophy of women in the Armed Forces is a continuously evolving process and is regularly reviewed by them. At present, the women are being commissioned in the Indian Army into ten Arms & Services viz. Corps of Engineers, Corps of Signals, Army Air Defence, Army Service Corps, Army Ordnance Corps, Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers, Army Aviation Corps, Intelligence Corps, Judge Advocate General Branch, and Army Education Corps in addition to the Armed Forces Medical Services.
The IAF has commissioned 15 women fighter pilots till date and the women officers are now being inducted in all combat roles.
Indian Navy has already deputed 28 women officers on board ships. Women officers are also deployed in combat roles onboard naval Aircraft/ship-borne helicopters.
The number of women personnel in the Armed Forces is as under:
Indian Army:
| Arm/Service | Strength of Women Officers (excluding Medical/Dental/Nursing officers) |
| Army Air Defence | 82 |
| Corps of Engineers | 212 |
| Corps of Signals | 243 |
| Army Service Corps | 272 |
| Army Ordnance Corps | 309 |
| Electronics and Mechanical Engineers | 274 |
| Intelligence Corps | 82 |
| Army Aviation Corps | 29 |
| Army Education Corps | 82 |
| Judge Advocate General Branch | 120 |
JCOs/OR: Provision for enrolment of women as Other Ranks in Corps of Military Police in the Indian Army has been introduced in 2019. Under this scheme, 1700 women personnel have been planned to be inducted in a phased manner (approximately 100 per year). The induction of women has commenced from the year 2020. A total of 300 vacancies for recruitment of Women Military Police have been released till date. Status of recruitment is as given below:
| Recruiting Year | Vacancies Released | Intake | Remarks |
| 2019-20 | 101 | 100 | Completed training and inducted. |
| 2020-21 | 99 | – | Recruitment withheld due to COVID-19 restrictions. |
| 2021-22 | 100 | – |
Indian Air Force:
| Branch | Stream | Strength of Women Officers (excluding Medical/Dental/Nursing officers) |
| Flying Pilot | F | 15 |
| Flying Pilot | H | 53 |
| Flying Pilot | T | 53 |
| Flying (Navigator) | 21 | |
| Aeronautical Engineering (Mechanical) | 60 | |
| Aeronautical Engineering (Electronics) | 551 | |
| Administration | 407 | |
| Logistics | 150 | |
| Accounts | 135 | |
| Education | 95 | |
| Meteorological | 100 |
Indian Navy:
| Branch/Cadre/Specialisation | Strength of Women Officers (excluding Medical/Dental/Nursing officers) |
| Executive (Logistics) | 134 |
| Executive (Law) | 08 |
| Executive (Observers) | 73 |
| Executive (Pilot) | 10 |
| Executive (ATC) | 80 |
| Executive (NAI) | 34 |
| Executive (PR) | 01 |
| Executive (SP) | 01 |
| Education (General Service) | 120 |
| Education (Met) | 26 |
| Engineering (Naval Constructor) | 72 |
Armed Forces Medical Services: Number of women serving in Armed Forces Medical Services are as follows:
| Service | Army Medical Corps
(AMC) |
Army Dental Corps (ADC) | Military Nursing Service (MNS) |
| Army | 1240 | 177 |
4734 |
| Navy | 145 | 7 | |
| Air Force | 281 | 5 |
Indian Army: The details of women officers who have been granted permanent commission in Indian Army are as under:
| Arm/Service | Strength of Women Officers (excluding Medical/Dental/Nursing officers) |
| Army Air Defence | 22 |
| Corps of Engineers | 89 |
| Corps of Signals | 75 |
| Army Service Corps | 118 |
| Army Ordnance Corps | 148 |
| Electronics and Mechanical Engineers | 97 |
| Intelligence Corps | 32 |
| Army Aviation Corps | 06 |
| Army Education Corps | 76 |
| Judge Advocate General Branch | 22 |
Indian Air Force: The details of women officers who have been granted permanent commission in Indian Air Force are as under:
| Branch | Strength of Women Officers (excluding Medical/Dental/Nursing officers) |
| Flying Pilot – F | 00 |
| Flying Pilot – T | 04 |
| Flying Pilot – H | 09 |
| Flying (Navigator) | 02 |
| Aeronautical Engineering (Mechanical) | 06 |
| Aeronautical Engineering (Electronics) | 79 |
| Administration | 133 |
| Logistics | 54 |
| Accounts | 52 |
| Education | 26 |
| Meteorological | 16 |
Indian Navy: The details of women officers who have been granted permanent commission and presently serving in Indian Navy are as under:
| Branch/Cadre/Specialisation | Strength of Women Officers (excluding Medical/Dental officers) |
| Executive (Logistics) | 16 |
| Executive (Observers) | 04 |
| Education (General Service) | 20 |
| Education (Met) | 06 |
| Engineering (Naval Constructor) | 03 |
Armed Forces Medical Services:
| Arm/Service | Number of Women granted Permanent Commission |
| AMC | 157 |
| ADC | 22 |
| MNS | 797 |