: Juggling Motherhood on the Warfront: My Life as a Woman Officer in the Indian Army #IndiaNEWS #Army I lost my father when I was 7-years-old. My last memory of him was witnessing his mortal remains

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Juggling Motherhood on the Warfront: My Life as a Woman Officer in the Indian Army #IndiaNEWS #Army
I lost my father when I was 7-years-old. My last memory of him was witnessing his mortal remains being brought back home in an army truck. I was too young to make a career choice back then but the army has always been like a family to me and a stable pillar in my life. So, I started dreaming of wearing that uniform and eventually decided to join the army,� says Capt. Yashika Hatwal Tyagi, 49-year-old Kargil war veteran.
Being brought up in a family of soldiers, it was a dream come true for Capt. Yashika when she donned the uniform for the first time in her life. She joined the Indian army in 1994 just a year after the Indian army started inducting women into its short service commission.
“Back then women were not allowed in the army. So, I aspired to become an IPS officer and worked towards my goal. But in 1993, in my final year of college, the army started inducting women into their short service commission and then there was no looking back. I completed my graduation and cracked Services Selection Board (SSB) exam and joined the army,� Capt. Yashika tells The Better India.
Entering The Army
Captain Yashika Tyagi commanding her contingent during the passing out parade at the Officers Training Academy in Chennai in 1994.
Having lost her father at a young age, Capt. Yashika and her two sisters were brought up by her mother who was just 33 years old when she lost her husband. “My mother completed her education after my father’s death and became a teacher to support us. Our childhood wasn’t easy, it was all about cutting corners and wearing or reading hand-me-down clothes and books. But there was a lot of love between us. We three women grew to be strong ladies, supporting each other. My mother always encouraged us to be independent and supported our dreams,� she says with pride.
Capt. Yashika met the love of her life Sanjeev Tyagi much before she joined the army. Tyagi, now a Colonel, was in the army when he married her in 1995 after being in love for several years. She says, “He has been a huge support system in my life and was always proud of me and encouraged me to join the army. Having been brought up without a male figure in my life and then meeting a person like him made me feel lucky. �
A year after her marriage, in 1996, she gave birth to her first son Kanhav and often had to leave her child at home because of work. She says. “A working mother would relate to the emotions I had to deal with back then. It’s a dilemma when you have to leave your child for work, at the same time you cannot compromise on your job, especially in the army, it is impossible to be late even by a minute.

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