President Murmu calls for more women officers in military engineer services

Significant push is being given to women empowerment in the defence forces whether in combat roles or medical services, President Droupadi Murmu said on Thursday, calling for more number of women officers in the Military Engineer Services (MES).

Addressin officer trainees of the MES, who had called on the president at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, she said as young officers in the field of construction, they have the prime duty to care of the environment also. "We must move towards increased use of renewable energy for sustainable development," Murmu said.

The president asked them to use information and communication technologies to improve the service delivery mechanism and move towards more efficient governance.

"Our soldiers are always ready to lay down their lives for the country and countrymen. You should feel privileged to provide service and support to the brave sons and daughters of the motherland," she said.

The officer trainees present were from the Indian Defence Service of Engineers, architect cadre and surveyor cadre of the MES.

"I would also like to emphasise the need for more number of women officers in MES. In recent times, we have seen increase in participation of women in our armed forces. Whether in combat roles or medical services of defence forces, a significant push is being given to women empowerment. This positive change would be hopefully visible in military engineer services also," Murmu said.

The president said the officers have joined the services at a time when India has just entered into the Amrit Kaal and has also assumed the G20's presidency.

"It is the time when the world is looking towards India for new innovations and solutions. As officers of military engineer services, they would be instrumental in providing rear line engineering support to all the defence arms, that is, army, air force, navy, coast guard and other organisations," she said.

"The dedicated engineering support that they provide to the armed forces enhances their overall performance and keeps them prepared to meet any exigencies," the president said.

Murmu said the nation must move towards increased use of renewable energy for sustainable development.

She also noted that the MES is greatly contributing in reducing the national carbon footprint by completing a large number of solar photovoltaic projects. They can innovate and use new building material that protect residents from hazardous chemicals, the president said.

"The overall human well-being increases when surrounded by natural materials. Such materials are eco-friendly and result in improved indoor air quality," she said.

Murmu said that the construction sector is very dynamic and technologies are changing very fast.

"The construction sector is very dynamic and the technologies are changing very fast. We all know that the construction sector plays a major role in economic growth and development. You can contribute immensely in developing infrastructure using modern tools of project management," she said.

The president urged them to make use of cutting-edge technologies such as machine learning and artificial intelligence in their future projects. This would help in a more efficient design and reduced time frame for construction, she said.

"At the COP 27, India said that the world urgently needs to move from mindless and destructive consumption to mindful and deliberate utilization. India highlighted the role of human beings as trustees of planet earth and stressed on the need to nurture it through sustainable lifestyles," Murmu said.

The president was happy to note that MES has completed the first ever 3D printed houses at Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

She urged the MES officers to try to use more such technologies that are cost effective and help in avoiding wastage. Murmu also urged to promote recycling of materials wherever possible.