178,000 Women Apply For NDA After Gender Barrier Lifted

New Delhi: Nearly one-third of the candidates who are set to appear for the National Defence Academy (NDA) examination scheduled for November 14 are women, the government officials in the know of things said on the condition of anonymity.

This will be women’s first-ever attempt at the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)-conducted entrance exam at centres across India. The Supreme Court, in a landmark judgement on August 18, allowed women to take the exam for entry to the security forces.

“Nearly 570,000 applications have been received and of these 178,000 are women,” an official was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

Class XII student Ananyaa Madhur Sharma from DLF Public School, Ghaziabad, is among the 178,000 women aspirants.

“When the Supreme Court ordered that women be allowed to join NDA, I knew the decision was for me. Before that, I was confused about my career path but clarity came with that decision. I am excited about the possibility of joining NDA and later opting for the Special Forces (SF),” Ananyaa was quoted as saying by the national daily.

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