The Indian Army will be setting up two Army Girls Sports Companies (AGSCs) in a phased manner within two of its centre of excellence nodes at Mhou and Pune to identify young talent, educate them and train them to become champions in their respective sporting discipline. The move is in line with the national vision of ‘women empowerment’ and demonstration of ‘Nari Shakti’.
The AGSCs will be situated at two key Army Centre of Excellence nodes: the Army Marksmanship Unit in Mhow, Madhya Pradesh, and the Army Sports Institute in Pune. Their primary goal is to provide training to young girls hailing from all corners of the country, focusing on disciplines such as Shooting, Archery, Athletics, Boxing, and Weightlifting.
These two locations, which will become fully operational from April 2024, boast state-of-the-art training infrastructure, including a sports medicine center, rehabilitation facility, and coaching amenities.
Utilising its wealth of experience in scouting young talent, as exemplified by the successful track record of Boys Sports Companies, the Indian Army is expected to play an important role in shaping the future of aspiring athletes.
This young talent at AGSCs will learn from the experience of senior Army teams and athletes training at these locations.
Girls enrolled in AGSCs will not only be eligible for recruitment as direct entry Non-Commissioned Officers and Direct Entry Junior Commissioned Officers but also have the option of enrollment as Agniveers.
Subedar Preeti Rajak, a champion trap shooter and Asian Games Silver medalist, started as a Havildar in the Corps of Military Police in December 2022. She made history, becoming the first woman soldier promoted to Subedar in January 2024. She trains at the Army Marksmanship Unit in Mhow, one of the locations establishing an Army Girls Sports Company.
Similarly, Jasmine Lamboria, Bronze medalist in the Commonwealth Games 2022, became a non-commissioned officer in the Indian Army in October 2022.