Odia Girl Becomes Kandhamal’s First Woman Flying Officer Of IAF

Kandhamal: A girl from remote and backward Kandhamal district has achieved what few from the cities aspire. Meet Flying Officer Sushree Sai Pranita Mohanty of the Indian Air Force (IAF).

A bright student though Sushree was from her school days, her family members never expected her to be an IAF officer. She is the first girl from the district to become a Flying Officer in the Air Force. She has been commissioned into the Meteorological Branch of the IAF After completing her training from a Hyderabad-based Air Defence Academy.

The youngest daughter of Shankar Narayan Mohanty and Minati Mohanty of Kendupadar village, Sushree studied in Phulbani Girls High School and completed Plus II from Phulbani College. She graduated in Physics from Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning, Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh and passed post-graduation from Pondicherry Central University.

Later, she went for PhD in Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research at Kalpakkam, Chennai. But midway, she left PhD to take up defence services as a career.

“We feel proud that after a lot of struggle she achieved the feat. She is an inspiration for others hailing from a remote area and pursuing education in government institutions,” said Shankar Narayan Mohanty.

Sushree is not the first from her family to join the defence services. Shankar Narayan’s father is a retired Naik in Army and one of his brothers is a Major in Army.

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