Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman has become the first full-time woman Defence Minister and the second woman to take charge of the key portfolio. Prior to her, Smt. Indira Gandhi, as then Prime Minister, had also held the portfolio as additional charge in the seventies. 

According to AsiaOne, Asia’s leading magazine, Ms. Sitharaman, 58, who earlier held the Commerce and Industries portfolio, was allocated the Defence portfolio after PM Modi government’s recent cabinet reshuffle. She took charge in the presence of her predecessor, Finance Minister Mr. Arun Jaitley who was given the additional charge of the key ministry in March after Mr. Manohar Parrikar quit the union cabinet to become the Chief Minister of Goa.

As per the report of AsiaOne Magazine, on her first day in office, she approved financial assistance out of the Raksha Mantri Ex-Servicemen Fund (RMEWF) for retired military personnel and released a grant of more than Rs 13 crore for 8,685 ex-servicemen, widows and dependents from the Armed Forces Flag Day Fund.

As the Defence Minister, Ms. Sitharaman will be a Member of the crucial Cabinet Committee on Security whose members include the Prime Minister, the Home Minister, the External Affairs Minister and the Finance Minister. In a short statement after taking over, she told AsiaOne News that her focus would be on military preparedness, resolving longstanding defence issues, ‘Make in India’ and the welfare of soldiers and their families: “My priority will definitely be the armed forces preparedness. It is important that the Indian armed forces receive the attention in terms of giving them every endowment and equipment necessary for them to perform their duty with the best of equipment available.” She promised to address “all long-pending defence issues in consultation with the Prime Minister and the cabinet.”

She also shared with AsiaOne News that “With technology coming in, we have to ensure that we ‘make in India’ so that we benefit and also send these to the international market.” She added, “Soldiers and their families should remain absolutely assured that their interests are watched.”

She later attended an event organised by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), which was also attended by Home Minister Mr. Rajnath Singh, where armoured buses, bullet proof jackets, unmanned aerial vehicles and small arms were handed over to Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs).Through her interaction with AsiaOne Business News, she also sharedthat it was a privilege to hand over indigenous products on her first engagement after assuming office.

As per the archives of AsiaOne Magazine, Ms. Sitharaman is analumna of Jawaharlal Nehru University, an ex-member of the National Commission for Women, and having worked with Pricewaterhouse Coopers, and with BBC in London, she has travelled the long and winding road to become India’s first full-time woman Defence Minister. She will have to deal with critical challenges in the defence ministry, including enhancing combat prowess of the armed forces to deal with an aggressive China along the northern border and Pakistan’s continuous proxy war.

Mr. V K Chaturvedi, defence expert,who is involved with the defence think-tank IDSA, also shared his views with AsiaOne Magazine and compared the new responsibilities of Ms. Sitharaman with her previous ones. As Commerce Minister, Ms. Sitharaman was involved in trade negotiations with several countries to lift barriers for free flow of trade. Now she will have to shift her attention to protecting the country’s borders. Further, Ms. Sitharaman will have to take steps to keep the morale of the armed forces high and ensure speedy military modernisation so that the country can effectively deal with various challenges. “It is a very good move. She comes with fresh ideas and I am confident she will justify her appointment to the post,” he added.