Woman Cadet Rekha Singh, who is the wife of Galwan Valley clash hero late Naik Deepak Singh, was commissioned into the Indian Army on Saturday. She is one among the first batch of five women officers.

Lt Rekha Singh decided to join Army after her husband passed away. She successfully completed her training at the Officers Training Academy (OTA) in Chennai. She said that she feels proud to become a lieutenant. She advised other women candidates to follow their heart without thinking about what others will say.

“After my husband passed away I decided to join Indian Army and started preparing for it. Today my training has been completed and I have become a lieutenant. I am feeling very proud and I would like to advise all the women candidates out there to believe in themselves and do,” Lt Rekha Singh told ANI.

However, Chief of Army Staff Gen Manoj Pande announced the decision of commissioning women officers into artillery units in January. The proposal was later approved by the government. Today, five women officers like Rekha Singh, Mehak Saini, Sakshi Dubey, Aditi Yadav and Pious Mudgil joined the Regiment of Artillery. Out of the five women officers, three are posted to units deployed along the borders with China and the other two in “challenging locations” near the frontier with Pakistan. The commissioning of women officers into the Regiment of Artillery is a testament to the ongoing transformation in the Indian Army, a source from the Indian Army said.