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Captain Shiva Chauhan is an Indian Army Officer of the Fire and Fury Corps, the XIV Corps of the Indian Army. On 2 January 2023, she became the first women officer to get operationally deployed at Siachen Glacier’s Kumar Post, the highest battlefield in the world.
Wiki/Biography
Captain Shiva Chouhan was born in Udaipur, Rajasthan. She did her schooling at a school in Udaipur. At the age of 11, Shiva lost her father. Post the demise of her father, her mother took care of her studies. Shiva holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Techno India NJR Institute of Technology, Udaipur. Chauhan desired to join the Indian Armed Forces since childhood. In March 2020, Chauhan secured an All India Rank #1 at the Service Selection Board interviews in Allahabad. Later, she was recommended from 19SSB Allahabad for SSC-Tech 25 (Army) entry. Shiva trained at the Officers Training Academy (OTA) in Chennai. Post her training, Shiva Chouhan was commissioned into the Engineer Regiment of the Indian Army.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 6″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family
Parents & Siblings
Shiva’s father passed away when she was 11 years old. Her mother is a homemaker. She has an elder sister.
Career
In May 2021, Shiva got commissioned into the Engineer Regiment of the Indian Army as a Lieutenant. Later, she was promoted to the rank of Captain through field ranking. In July 2022, on the occasion of Kargil Vijay Diwas, Shiva Chauhan successfully led the Sura Soi Cycling Expedition from Siachen War Memorial to the Kargil War Memorial, covering a distance of 508 km. Thereafter, she took up the challenge of leading the army personnel of the Sura Soi Engineer Regiment at Siachen Glacier, the world’s highest battlefield. In the same year, Shiva got shortlisted to receive training at the Siachen Battle School based on her exceptionally good performance.
Breaking the Glass Ceiling
Post her selection, Shiva was assigned to the Fire and Fury Corps of the Northern Command of the Indian Army, and she went to Siachen Battle School, where she underwent rigorous training alongside the officers and men of the Indian Army.
The training included ice wall climbing, endurance training, avalanche and crevasse rescue, and survival drills.
After a month of arduous training, Shiva Chauhan was inducted to the Kumar Post at Siachen Glacier to lead a team of Sappers for a period of three months; The team was given the responsibility of numerous combat engineering tasks. Located in the Karakoram range of the Himalayas and placed at an altitude of around 15,600 feet, Siachen Glacier is known as the highest militarised zone in the world.
Celebrating Shiva’s feat, the Fire and Fury Corps of the Indian Army tweeted,
Breaking the Glass Ceiling. Captain Shiva Chauhan of Fire and Fury Sappers became the first woman officer to be operationally deployed in Kumar Post, post completion of arduous training, at the highest battlefield of the world Siachen.”
Terming her achievement ‘an encouraging sign,’ Rajnath Singh, the Defence Minister of India, congratulated Captain Chauhan on Twitter. He tweeted,
Excellent news! I am extremely happy to see more women joining the Armed Forces and take every challenge in stride. It is an encouraging sign. My best wishes to Capt Shiva Chauhan.”
Facts/Trivia
- Captain Shiva Chauhan belongs to the Bengal Sappers Corps (formally called the Bengal Engineering Group) of the Indian Army’s Corps of Engineers.
- According to some sources, after Chauhan got deployed on the Siachen Glacier, special arrangements were made to accommodate the sole female officer at Kumar Post. She was allotted a separate hut and restroom.
- In an interview, Shiva Chauhan revealed that it was her mother who motivated her to become an Army Officer. She also revealed that she learned presentation skills from her elder sister.