In a new role, 438 women to don the khaki; 6 faint at passing out parade

A total of 438 women police recruits joined the ranks in Haryana Police on Saturday. Deevakar Anand reports.

A total of 438 women police recruits joined the ranks in Haryana Police on Saturday.

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The scorching heat could not dampen the spirits of the women cadets during their passing out parade at the Recruitment Training Centre in Bhondsi near Gurgaon.

While most of them are Class 12 pass outs, 34 cadets are post-graduates, 32 professional graduates, one engineer and an MBA.

The Haryana government also announced creation of 100 new posts of deputy superintendents of police. This was announced by chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda during the passing out parade.

“The job security that comes with a government job drove me to become a police constable,” said Suman, a recruit with a master’s degree in Science.

But didn’t the thought of ‘extended’ working hours and regular brush with criminals dissuade these women from joining the force and instead opt for corporate jobs?

“These days, working hours in the corporate sector are also exhaustive,” said another recruit not wishing to be named.

Were these ‘pretty,’ educated women easier to train at the academy?

“It can both be easy and difficult to train them. They pick up things faster,” said Om Prakash, an instructor at the training academy.