Cavalier India Defence Training Academy

Vijayalakshmi Ramanan retired from IAF as Wing Commander in 1979. The 96-year-old passed away in Bengaluru on 18 October. By Special Arrangement Wing Commander (retd) Vijayalakshmi Ramanan, the first woman officer of the Indian Air Force (IAF), had more than one ‘first’ to her credit. She was not only the first woman to wear saree as uniform, she also designed the uniform. Wing Commander (retd) Ramanan passed away on Sunday (18 October) at the age of 96 in Bengaluru. Her ashes were immersed in the Cauvery river near Srirangapatna Tuesday by her family. S.V.L. Narayan, her son-in-law, told that Ramanan had developed health complications in the past 10 days and was shifted to the IAF’s Command Hospital. “She passed away peacefully Sunday night. She was very active till the very end. Days before she passed away, Ramanan had even given a handwritten note to her doctor,” Narayan said. Born on 27 February 1924 , Ramanan did her MBBS from the Madras Medical College in 1943 and was named the b...

The Army is planning to convert its famous 61st Cavalry, the only active serving horse cavalry regiment in the world, into a regular armoured regiment with tanks. It has sparked outrage among purists in military circles, who assert the “short-sighted step will destroy a glorious historical tradition”. A senior officer at the Army headquarters, confirming the move to TOI on Thursday, said the aim was to transform the Jaipur-based 61st Cavalry into “a combat force” from its present role of being “largely a ceremonial unit” that also engages in sporting activities like polo. “But the cavalry’s 200-odd horses, some in Jaipur and the others in Delhi, will be retained,” he said. Sources, however, said the commanding officer (CO) of 61st Calvary, which is likely to be rechristened the 61st Armoured Regiment at Jaipur, will have three “independent squadrons” of tanks under him. “The horses are likely to be moved to Delhi to set up an ‘equestrian excellence node’ or something,” said a source. T...