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‘When it comes to managing periods, women in the Army are fighting a battle no one knows about’
When a whole team of boys, under your wing addresses you as ‘Sir’, it is a different kind of validation and acceptance, said Captain Yashika Hatwal Tyagi.
From braving sub-zero temperatures and going through a pregnancy during the Battle of Kargil to becoming the first female Army veteran to salute the President on the Kartavya Path during the Republic Day parade, Captain Yashika Hatwal Tyagi has broken several glass ceilings. In an exclusive conversation with HT’s Sreya Deb, she spoke on her Kargil experience, women Army personnel, and a lot more. Excerpts:-
You were head of the logistics unit even before the Kargil War broke out. Share your experience of the war.
In a matter of a week, I had to go from arranging winter wear, ammunitions, etc. for a few thousand soldiers, to disbursing the same, along with heavy artillery to lakhs of soldiers. The area under my charge extended from Leh to the Siachen Glacier. I was in the second trimester of my pregnancy during all this. As the head of the logistics wing, I braved sub-zero temperatures to provide ammunition and reinforcements for our soldiers during the Kargil War.
What was your biggest challenge while on duty during the battle?
Before facing the enemies’ bullets, the soldiers had to face the extreme cold climate of the area, the steep cliffs, low oxygen levels and wind speeds -- and I was leading the team responsible for providing them with the needful. The main challenge was to provide for the deluge of soldiers who we suddenly had to account and provide for. The only route for transporting AWS (advance winter stocking) would be open only four out of 12 months, the rest of the eight months, it would be covered with snow -- which meant that we would have to stock up for those eight months in advance. I made the decision to dip into all of our reserve stocks to arm all of the soldiers with weapons, helmets, uniforms, and more.
Chief of Army staff at the time, General Ved Malik, had said, “We will fight with everything we have,” which went to show how little we really had to fight with. The Bofors howitzer was called the ‘Hero of Kargil’ as it was the first time in the weapon’s history that it was being used for direct firing rather than for cover -- each Bofors shell was over US$1000. However, when a whole team of boys, under your wing addresses you as ‘Sir’, it is a different kind of validation and acceptance.
What is an improvement you would like to see when it comes to women personnel in the Indian Army?
I very emphatically believe that when it comes to managing periods, women in the Army are fighting a battle no one knows about. While menstrual cycles are a normal bodily function, it comes with certain medical conditions like amenorrhea and dysmenorrhea (lack of periods and continuous bleeding and cramping respectively, often caused by stress among other things) and several other discomforts that women have to manage -- which makes them constantly conscious about spotting during their training periods. People have no idea about these conditions -- men and women alike.
When I was in training in 1994, I would see girls simply sitting to the side during the mandatory swimming tests if they were on their periods -- there was no space or option for menstruating women in training or active duty. Rather than being labelled as anxious or cranky, women should feel comfortable enough to go about their duties without such taboos. I want to remove these taboos specifically in training institutions -- I want girls to know about menstrual cups and see the practicality in using them rather than giving into preconceived and incorrect notions about it. When men try to tell me about the reasons women are unlikely to be able to do things due to their menstrual cycles, I simply tell them “No uterus, no opinion. You are not eligible to have a say on this matter”.
What was it like to be the first woman to represent Army veterans on Kartavya Path on Republic Day?
It was an unbelievable moment and I felt that the universe had listened to my dreams and was rewarding me with exactly what I had wanted for years. Even when I was in the National Cadet Corps, I always wanted to salute the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces on Republic Day on what was then called Rajpath but was rejected because I was relatively short-heighted. However, that was a long-lived dream of mine that I did not think would ever come true, on account of having tried and let down so many times. But I suppose I put it out in the universe so avidly that it came to me as a ‘full circle’ moment.
Initially, I thought it was a friend playing a prank, knowing how badly I wanted it -- but when I heard the words -- “You have been selected as a Kargil war veteran” -- from the officer from the Directorate of Indian Army Veterans, I started jumping. And this year, I became the first woman to ever represent the Army, Navy, and Airforce veterans at the Republic Day parade. I will never forget the people shouting “Bharat Mata ki Jai” and “Vande Mataram” as I saluted the President from my tableau.
What’s keeping you engaged post retirement?
I am working as a warrior mindset coach. I train corporate officials, professionals, and students on how to handle challenging situations.
