UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Women in Indian Armed Forces - Expanding Roles and Opportunities

Q1. How many women officers constituted the first batch commissioned into the fighter stream of the Indian Air Force in June 2016?

  • A. Two
  • B. Three
  • C. Five
  • D. Seventeen

Q2. In which year were women first inducted as Short Service Commission (SSC) officers in select branches of the three Services?

  • A. 1888
  • B. 1992
  • C. 2008
  • D. 2015

Q3. With reference to Supreme Court interventions on women in the Armed Forces, consider the following: 1. The Annie Nagaraja judgment (2020) directed grant of Permanent Commission to women officers in the Indian Navy. 2. Women were permitted to write the National Defence Academy entrance examination following a 2021 Supreme Court order. 3. A total of 557 women officers were granted Permanent Commission in the Indian Army after the 17 February 2020 verdict. 4. Permanent Commission was extended to women in the submarine branch of the Indian Navy. Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. The Annie Nagaraja judgment (2020) directed grant of Permanent Commission to women officers in the Indian Navy.
  2. Women were permitted to write the National Defence Academy entrance examination following a 2021 Supreme Court order.
  3. A total of 557 women officers were granted Permanent Commission in the Indian Army after the 17 February 2020 verdict.
  4. Permanent Commission was extended to women in the submarine branch of the Indian Navy.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 1 and 4
  • C. 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q4. The description of the National Defence Academy as 'co-educational' from 2022 onwards refers to which one of the following?

  • A. Admission of both men and women cadets to the same tri-Service pre-commission training at Khadakwasla
  • B. Joint training of officer cadets and Agniveers within a single academy
  • C. Establishment of a separate, dedicated women's wing within the NDA campus
  • D. Simultaneous induction of every cadet into both the NDA and the Indian Military Academy

Q5. How many women cadets made up the first-ever batch to pass out of the National Defence Academy, in May 2025?

  • A. 15
  • B. 17
  • C. 144
  • D. 158

Q6. Permanent Commission for women Short Service Commission officers in the Indian Army, on par with their male counterparts, was mandated by which Supreme Court judgment?

  • A. Secretary, Ministry of Defence v. Babita Puniya (2020)
  • B. Union of India v. Annie Nagaraja (2020)
  • C. Kush Kalra v. Union of India (2021)
  • D. Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan (1997)

Q7. In which of the three Services did the Supreme Court first mandate the grant of Permanent Commission to women Short Service Commission officers (February 2020)?

  • A. Indian Army
  • B. Indian Navy
  • C. Indian Air Force
  • D. Indian Coast Guard

Q8. The scheme for inducting women officers into combat (fighter) roles in the IAF, begun on an experimental basis in 2015, was regularised into a permanent scheme in which year?

  • A. 2016
  • B. 2018
  • C. 2020
  • D. 2022

Q9. Under the Agnipath scheme, which Service became the first to induct women as Agniveers (sailors)?

  • A. Indian Army
  • B. Indian Navy
  • C. Indian Air Force
  • D. Indian Coast Guard

Q10. Which one of the three Services has opened all its branches and streams, including the fighter stream, to women officers without exception?

  • A. Indian Air Force
  • B. Indian Navy
  • C. Indian Army
  • D. Indian Coast Guard

Q11. With reference to the recent growth of women's representation in the Indian Armed Forces, consider the following statements: 1. The number of women officers rose from about 3,000 in 2014 to over 11,000. 2. The first batch of women cadets to pass out of the NDA (May 2025) was larger than the second batch (November 2025). 3. The Army reduced its annual intake of women cadets from 144 to 80 vacancies in 2024. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The number of women officers rose from about 3,000 in 2014 to over 11,000.
  2. The first batch of women cadets to pass out of the NDA (May 2025) was larger than the second batch (November 2025).
  3. The Army reduced its annual intake of women cadets from 144 to 80 vacancies in 2024.
  • A. 1 only
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3
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