ET Edit: Allowing induction of women fighters in IAF a welcome move

The decision by the government to allow for the induction of women fighter pilots into the Indian Air Force is a welcome move. It is in keeping with the aspiration of women to serve the country as equals to men, and is in line with the trends in developed nations. A good marker of a country’s level of development is how it views the contribution and capacity to contribute of its women. In this context, acknowledging and accepting this long-standing demand of women in the armed forces is a step in the right direction. While it is indeed a momentous day for women in the air force, the struggle for equal treatment is much larger.

This point is not just to remove barriers for women to perform the roles that traditionally have been seen as the domain of men. Equality is also about giving equal value to the roles that have been traditionally viewed as women’s work. It is also about acknowledging that while the traditional man-woman divide in the workplace has blurred to a great extent, such that it is capability, ability and training that determine the best candidate for a job and not one’s gender, the same cannot be said of the space outside the workplace. Caring for one’s family is still seen as the primary responsibility of women. But the reality of modern life is that both men and women have fluid roles in their workplace and outside.

The lack of equality impacts women at the bottom of the economic and social chain much more than those at the top, because for them juggling their roles as caregivers and wage earners has real implications for their families. The pressure now must be on government to put forward policies that allow for equal treatment of men and women in discharging their role as parents, and caregivers.