I was born in 1946 and soon after my
birth
they were rumors going around that there
is going to be a partition of a country
which was India nobody took it very
seriously at that time and a census was
held asking who wants to be in so-called
Pakistan and who wants to go back to
India well my family had roots in that
part of the country they were born
brought up and stayed there for
generations so obviously they all said
that in case the partition does take
place we will stay here and we will make
a life in Pakistan as we have been doing
earlier but after some time the few
violence started breaking out the rites
taking place and the things gradually
started becoming worse in that part that
was the West Punjab it was known as at
that time when the things became really
bad some of the people good friends of
my family told my parents that is better
that you shift to a safer place
my father safer place well I’m here I
have been born and brought up of here
what more can be a safer place for me
listen no the things are becoming bad
and imagine a Muslim family took my
parents my family to their own home and
they said you stayed there for few
couple of days till the pink settle down
so my father mother they just packed a
few things as if they’re going for a
vacation and they moved to their family
the home they stayed there for about a
week but by that time the things had
become so bad that they’re all people
all around started questioning that
Muslim family whom everyone used to call
mall Biddy that you are harboring a
people a Hindu family and we will burn
your house also
he stood like an armor and said that if
you want to touch even single person out
of them first you have to slaughter all
of us and only then you can reach but
later on he also realized that things
were not very smooth so he organized a
truck with goods which was going to
India made a place in the middle but the
family that is the four children my
parents and with no belongings for the
safe passage to India so overnight our
family became a refugee number of family
members probably could not even make it
so we landed in a place small place in
Uttar Pradesh that is a harem pole they
were all put in a room called in a
refugee camp and anybody who came from
that part of the country in nature so
they accommodated everyone everybody was
probably at that time heartbroken and
had a large heart at the same time so
every in that small little rooms as many
people could be accommodated or put in
that particular place as my parents tell
because I was too small that a bullock
cart used to come there were no tracks
bands in those days with the Russian
with the food everybody would sit in a
row asking for food and they were so
obliged that we had something to eat and
we are alive nobody committed suicide
nobody had a nervous breakdown you can
imagine the mental makeup of that
particular generation today a small
failure and here probably we need a
psychiatric help or the way in the
evening everybody would sit including
the woman of the house and the gentleman
and trying to find out what is future in
store for them how to build their life
my father had served in a British Army
and event for the World War two so he
was taken into the armed forces
not as an officer he joined as a hobbled
are mean these are probably one of the
soldiers over there he was thankful to
God what I remember my parents have
whatever I’m a little I recollect none
of them had any bitterness they only
said I’m belong to a Punjabi family in
Punjabi days to say pooja a give adore
means forget about what has happened
look forward and make your life so this
is how we came to India as a refugee and
how my parents started building their
life now after the trauma of the
partition and whatever they went through
so my father had decided one thing that
he will give a education and healthy
food to his children education means
whatever they can do and healthy food no
luxuries but only so that they can grow
healthy and you will learn everything
okay I started and now I became very
sincere because I didn’t want to see
failure in the eyes of my father so one
year I spent only in learning physics
and chemistry well next year I appeared
for the PMT exams I deserved and I got
admission in good medical colleges of U
P
that was Kanpur and Agra everybody was
very happy okay and just two days were
left for me to join the college suddenly
a big brown envelope appeared in our
house so we kept it aside when my father
came in the evening and he says quick
government Kikuchi TI here so he read he
was thrilled that letter was from Armed
Forces Medical College for me saying
that I have got admission over there and
my father said forget about can put
forget about Agra you are going to join
Armed Forces Medical College now our
Forces Medical College had only one year
of standing forget about the india even
in pune nobody nowhere is this part
collies so I said I’m not going to join
this College which nobody has heard
about he said doesn’t matter it is run
by the Armed Forces it will have very
good discipline now tell me what
discipline has got to do with the master
of becoming a doctor so here I was first
to join a Armed Forces Medical College
he packed me that okay here you are and
you’re going to join FMC I landed in
Armed Forces Medical College which were
told this is your hostel and the hostel
I was looking all about and what did I
see
a long Barrett with just 20 beds put
over there and that was our hostel I
knew that yes this is what my father
wanted me and Here I am which has got no
me the thing basically but let me tell
you ladies and gentlemen 15 days in that
college and I think that was one of the
biggest turning point of my life me
coming from Saharanpur
has never traveled beyond Delhi and all
of us over there used to think anybody
above Papa is Punjabi and everybody
below Papa is Madrasi that’s all the
idea what we had about the India there
we had a student from every state we had
parties we had people from amid Jews we
had bodies we had I mean you name a
place and that is the one which taught
me what India is and I thank our forces
Medical College for what I was anyway
I understood the subject I did well in
the college and then came the last straw
see during the college when I joined
they asked us do you want a stipend
means you’ll get 75 rupees a month and
you had to sign this bond we didn’t
understand what bond simplified rupees
or big money I will be held to my father
so we are signed that bond when I passed
out I realize that 75 rupees what we get
was a born that will be joining the
Armed Forces and now if I had to break
that bond I had to pay three thousand
five hundred rupees now
who has the 3,500 rupees I didn’t have
so I joined the army so ladies and
gentlemen I joined I became a doctor my
father wanted
I joined Armed Forces Medical College my
father wanted and I became joined army
because I could not pay 3,500 rupees and
that was that time when ladies were
considered in the Armed Forces
as a you can say a stage artist they
would come they would go and they will
just suffer few months there was nobody
to stay permanent over there but when I
joined the college over there for first
couple of years was very happy I was
very happy over there but everybody
would tell me that you are joining it’s
a man’s world as a lady you have no
future but against nothing Saint in well
I got married
and now I ask for my posting to Srinagar
they my husband was there that was the
71 when the war was looming and all the
families were sent back it was declared
a non-family station so then my
application over there the money heard
because I look at this lady she wants to
come and stay with a husband not as an
officer they thought I’m coming as a
wife over there and they said nothing
doing my application was sent back and
they politely told me in Armed Forces
the policy is not to post husband and
wife together the wife can say but now
the officers are not very funny rule
anyway after that when I was a year I
was going to have my first child so I
asked for a maternity leave again army
headquarters been through all the rules
what kind of leave is authorized and
I’ll leave casual leave sick leave
there’s nothing known as maternity leave
because there were no lady officer and
the gentleman of his work don’t have
babies so there was nothing known as
maternity leave and they told me you
manage whatever you want we don’t have
this particular rule over here so I said
I can’t continue in this kind of a
scenario where there are no rules and
regulation for the lady officers at all
one very senior surgeon he called me and
he says look times change people change
policies change and if you want you are
the one who will can bring this change
nobody else so don’t run away don’t grip
work hard become professional and bring
this change otherwise the ladies will
never be accepted in the unfrozen well
it really I mean I think I said okay
I’ll continue I wanted to be a surgeon
so I thought I applied professionally I
want to be a surgeon my application once
twice and ever heard of it they didn’t
want a lady a surgeon to operate on a
soldier unheard of so have a stone see
the ladies are taken in Armed Forces
mainly to look after the families of the
soldier
so you apply for guiding that will be
better I said okay I had no choice I
applied to be a gynecology
my god I was not only taken in upon
myself the first on the merit list so I
did my post graduation again and became
a gynecologist now those days that tag
of the Lady of his earth now I’m talking
about 70s there hardly any ladies was
number one lady officers work sometimes
the married lady officers okay really
married lady medical officers don’t
expect them to work now with this tag
after doing a post graduation I went to
a large Hospital in Jalandhar
when I went over there the commandant
called the head of the department told
you are getting away a gynecologist but
don’t be happy she’s a lady she’s
married and she she’s got two small
children so she’s not going to work for
you I was not accepted as a professional
over there so anyway I had to work I
assure you it took me two years to
establish that yes a lady officer a
gynecologist can work as hard as anybody
else I had to rope in my parents my
in-laws everybody to look after my
children and make sure that I work as
hard and this tag goes away well I was
happy by the time I left they realized
yes lady officers can work so this went
on and I finished my professional market
carrier in the meantime I’ll
lies that the soldiers the Armed Forces
is a soldier centric organization the
families treatment is given as a welfare
but there was lots of problem and the
biggest problem I will give you only one
incidence is the infertility amongst the
soldier because most of the time they
spend there in the field areas in the
high altitudes hardly they get time to
spend with their families so I thought I
must do something and those days this
infertility centers were hardly one or
two one in Bombay one somewhere else so
I’ve worked hard during my own live I
then found out where all what I can do I
made a big project registry for setting
up of her infertility center in Armed
Forces I was invited to give a
presentation well you know how Armed
Forces is you have worked over there
like number of senior officers I give a
presentation and I could make it
everybody was bland they didn’t
understand a word what it means but one
thing they understood was that my
project means that I want my soldiers to
have babies they all got up my god in
our country there’s so much of explosion
of population and look at this doctor
who wants to produce more children and I
was considered almost as an
anti-national will bring bringing up
more children in this world I had to
literally convince everyone to Amin then
I said okay let’s go back door I tried
to find out how many senior officers
don’t have children how many of them
their children have not been able to
conceive so then to their families try
to convince them and I was proud that my
scent of a sanction and we had one of
the best Center in the Armed Forces of
course after that they said ok now you
are good professional I had to go as an
administrator they posted me to Jammu
that is that time again the attack on
Parliament we were almost at war and
everybody thought is okay you are good
professional but you have to command a
hospital and you
– come on so many people will she be
able to do it or not but everybody had a
doubt but let me tell you one thing that
your juniors your soldiers our people
are working they look at the chair not
who’s sitting over there not where there
is a lady or a gentleman they only want
one thing that’s at the time of crisis
they are commanded we’ll sell them
through then look at them like a ship
they look at the captain that in
everything Canton and storm the ship the
captain will sail the ship through the
safety I had excellent tenure as an
administrator and after that I had I
would say I think I crossed the
boundaries as a professional as an
administrator and when I became picked
up my rank as a leffen Journal I got
posted back to our forces Medical
College from where I started and I think
that was the most glorious moment of my
life so at the end I just want to convey
one thing to you
there’s nothing known as a gender well a
male of female some people told me well
dr. Arora you have been very lucky to
become the first lady laughs in general
I thought to myself is it my good luck
yes I was lucky to have parents who gave
me the education I was lucky to have
teachers who guided me rightly I was
lucky to have colleagues who really
supported me and lucky to have serve in
an organization Armed Forces which in
spite of all odds they supported me and
they did not discriminate after the
baton Mills but all this gives you a
strong foundation you have to build your
life on that and the architect of that
life is nobody you are the architect so
given a good foundation build a life and
work hard for it it is for you people to
cross all the boundaries and I wish all
of you all the best and pray all the boundaries which are they
birth
they were rumors going around that there
is going to be a partition of a country
which was India nobody took it very
seriously at that time and a census was
held asking who wants to be in so-called
Pakistan and who wants to go back to
India well my family had roots in that
part of the country they were born
brought up and stayed there for
generations so obviously they all said
that in case the partition does take
place we will stay here and we will make
a life in Pakistan as we have been doing
earlier but after some time the few
violence started breaking out the rites
taking place and the things gradually
started becoming worse in that part that
was the West Punjab it was known as at
that time when the things became really
bad some of the people good friends of
my family told my parents that is better
that you shift to a safer place
my father safer place well I’m here I
have been born and brought up of here
what more can be a safer place for me
listen no the things are becoming bad
and imagine a Muslim family took my
parents my family to their own home and
they said you stayed there for few
couple of days till the pink settle down
so my father mother they just packed a
few things as if they’re going for a
vacation and they moved to their family
the home they stayed there for about a
week but by that time the things had
become so bad that they’re all people
all around started questioning that
Muslim family whom everyone used to call
mall Biddy that you are harboring a
people a Hindu family and we will burn
your house also
he stood like an armor and said that if
you want to touch even single person out
of them first you have to slaughter all
of us and only then you can reach but
later on he also realized that things
were not very smooth so he organized a
truck with goods which was going to
India made a place in the middle but the
family that is the four children my
parents and with no belongings for the
safe passage to India so overnight our
family became a refugee number of family
members probably could not even make it
so we landed in a place small place in
Uttar Pradesh that is a harem pole they
were all put in a room called in a
refugee camp and anybody who came from
that part of the country in nature so
they accommodated everyone everybody was
probably at that time heartbroken and
had a large heart at the same time so
every in that small little rooms as many
people could be accommodated or put in
that particular place as my parents tell
because I was too small that a bullock
cart used to come there were no tracks
bands in those days with the Russian
with the food everybody would sit in a
row asking for food and they were so
obliged that we had something to eat and
we are alive nobody committed suicide
nobody had a nervous breakdown you can
imagine the mental makeup of that
particular generation today a small
failure and here probably we need a
psychiatric help or the way in the
evening everybody would sit including
the woman of the house and the gentleman
and trying to find out what is future in
store for them how to build their life
my father had served in a British Army
and event for the World War two so he
was taken into the armed forces
not as an officer he joined as a hobbled
are mean these are probably one of the
soldiers over there he was thankful to
God what I remember my parents have
whatever I’m a little I recollect none
of them had any bitterness they only
said I’m belong to a Punjabi family in
Punjabi days to say pooja a give adore
means forget about what has happened
look forward and make your life so this
is how we came to India as a refugee and
how my parents started building their
life now after the trauma of the
partition and whatever they went through
so my father had decided one thing that
he will give a education and healthy
food to his children education means
whatever they can do and healthy food no
luxuries but only so that they can grow
healthy and you will learn everything
okay I started and now I became very
sincere because I didn’t want to see
failure in the eyes of my father so one
year I spent only in learning physics
and chemistry well next year I appeared
for the PMT exams I deserved and I got
admission in good medical colleges of U
P
that was Kanpur and Agra everybody was
very happy okay and just two days were
left for me to join the college suddenly
a big brown envelope appeared in our
house so we kept it aside when my father
came in the evening and he says quick
government Kikuchi TI here so he read he
was thrilled that letter was from Armed
Forces Medical College for me saying
that I have got admission over there and
my father said forget about can put
forget about Agra you are going to join
Armed Forces Medical College now our
Forces Medical College had only one year
of standing forget about the india even
in pune nobody nowhere is this part
collies so I said I’m not going to join
this College which nobody has heard
about he said doesn’t matter it is run
by the Armed Forces it will have very
good discipline now tell me what
discipline has got to do with the master
of becoming a doctor so here I was first
to join a Armed Forces Medical College
he packed me that okay here you are and
you’re going to join FMC I landed in
Armed Forces Medical College which were
told this is your hostel and the hostel
I was looking all about and what did I
see
a long Barrett with just 20 beds put
over there and that was our hostel I
knew that yes this is what my father
wanted me and Here I am which has got no
me the thing basically but let me tell
you ladies and gentlemen 15 days in that
college and I think that was one of the
biggest turning point of my life me
coming from Saharanpur
has never traveled beyond Delhi and all
of us over there used to think anybody
above Papa is Punjabi and everybody
below Papa is Madrasi that’s all the
idea what we had about the India there
we had a student from every state we had
parties we had people from amid Jews we
had bodies we had I mean you name a
place and that is the one which taught
me what India is and I thank our forces
Medical College for what I was anyway
I understood the subject I did well in
the college and then came the last straw
see during the college when I joined
they asked us do you want a stipend
means you’ll get 75 rupees a month and
you had to sign this bond we didn’t
understand what bond simplified rupees
or big money I will be held to my father
so we are signed that bond when I passed
out I realize that 75 rupees what we get
was a born that will be joining the
Armed Forces and now if I had to break
that bond I had to pay three thousand
five hundred rupees now
who has the 3,500 rupees I didn’t have
so I joined the army so ladies and
gentlemen I joined I became a doctor my
father wanted
I joined Armed Forces Medical College my
father wanted and I became joined army
because I could not pay 3,500 rupees and
that was that time when ladies were
considered in the Armed Forces
as a you can say a stage artist they
would come they would go and they will
just suffer few months there was nobody
to stay permanent over there but when I
joined the college over there for first
couple of years was very happy I was
very happy over there but everybody
would tell me that you are joining it’s
a man’s world as a lady you have no
future but against nothing Saint in well
I got married
and now I ask for my posting to Srinagar
they my husband was there that was the
71 when the war was looming and all the
families were sent back it was declared
a non-family station so then my
application over there the money heard
because I look at this lady she wants to
come and stay with a husband not as an
officer they thought I’m coming as a
wife over there and they said nothing
doing my application was sent back and
they politely told me in Armed Forces
the policy is not to post husband and
wife together the wife can say but now
the officers are not very funny rule
anyway after that when I was a year I
was going to have my first child so I
asked for a maternity leave again army
headquarters been through all the rules
what kind of leave is authorized and
I’ll leave casual leave sick leave
there’s nothing known as maternity leave
because there were no lady officer and
the gentleman of his work don’t have
babies so there was nothing known as
maternity leave and they told me you
manage whatever you want we don’t have
this particular rule over here so I said
I can’t continue in this kind of a
scenario where there are no rules and
regulation for the lady officers at all
one very senior surgeon he called me and
he says look times change people change
policies change and if you want you are
the one who will can bring this change
nobody else so don’t run away don’t grip
work hard become professional and bring
this change otherwise the ladies will
never be accepted in the unfrozen well
it really I mean I think I said okay
I’ll continue I wanted to be a surgeon
so I thought I applied professionally I
want to be a surgeon my application once
twice and ever heard of it they didn’t
want a lady a surgeon to operate on a
soldier unheard of so have a stone see
the ladies are taken in Armed Forces
mainly to look after the families of the
soldier
so you apply for guiding that will be
better I said okay I had no choice I
applied to be a gynecology
my god I was not only taken in upon
myself the first on the merit list so I
did my post graduation again and became
a gynecologist now those days that tag
of the Lady of his earth now I’m talking
about 70s there hardly any ladies was
number one lady officers work sometimes
the married lady officers okay really
married lady medical officers don’t
expect them to work now with this tag
after doing a post graduation I went to
a large Hospital in Jalandhar
when I went over there the commandant
called the head of the department told
you are getting away a gynecologist but
don’t be happy she’s a lady she’s
married and she she’s got two small
children so she’s not going to work for
you I was not accepted as a professional
over there so anyway I had to work I
assure you it took me two years to
establish that yes a lady officer a
gynecologist can work as hard as anybody
else I had to rope in my parents my
in-laws everybody to look after my
children and make sure that I work as
hard and this tag goes away well I was
happy by the time I left they realized
yes lady officers can work so this went
on and I finished my professional market
carrier in the meantime I’ll
lies that the soldiers the Armed Forces
is a soldier centric organization the
families treatment is given as a welfare
but there was lots of problem and the
biggest problem I will give you only one
incidence is the infertility amongst the
soldier because most of the time they
spend there in the field areas in the
high altitudes hardly they get time to
spend with their families so I thought I
must do something and those days this
infertility centers were hardly one or
two one in Bombay one somewhere else so
I’ve worked hard during my own live I
then found out where all what I can do I
made a big project registry for setting
up of her infertility center in Armed
Forces I was invited to give a
presentation well you know how Armed
Forces is you have worked over there
like number of senior officers I give a
presentation and I could make it
everybody was bland they didn’t
understand a word what it means but one
thing they understood was that my
project means that I want my soldiers to
have babies they all got up my god in
our country there’s so much of explosion
of population and look at this doctor
who wants to produce more children and I
was considered almost as an
anti-national will bring bringing up
more children in this world I had to
literally convince everyone to Amin then
I said okay let’s go back door I tried
to find out how many senior officers
don’t have children how many of them
their children have not been able to
conceive so then to their families try
to convince them and I was proud that my
scent of a sanction and we had one of
the best Center in the Armed Forces of
course after that they said ok now you
are good professional I had to go as an
administrator they posted me to Jammu
that is that time again the attack on
Parliament we were almost at war and
everybody thought is okay you are good
professional but you have to command a
hospital and you
– come on so many people will she be
able to do it or not but everybody had a
doubt but let me tell you one thing that
your juniors your soldiers our people
are working they look at the chair not
who’s sitting over there not where there
is a lady or a gentleman they only want
one thing that’s at the time of crisis
they are commanded we’ll sell them
through then look at them like a ship
they look at the captain that in
everything Canton and storm the ship the
captain will sail the ship through the
safety I had excellent tenure as an
administrator and after that I had I
would say I think I crossed the
boundaries as a professional as an
administrator and when I became picked
up my rank as a leffen Journal I got
posted back to our forces Medical
College from where I started and I think
that was the most glorious moment of my
life so at the end I just want to convey
one thing to you
there’s nothing known as a gender well a
male of female some people told me well
dr. Arora you have been very lucky to
become the first lady laughs in general
I thought to myself is it my good luck
yes I was lucky to have parents who gave
me the education I was lucky to have
teachers who guided me rightly I was
lucky to have colleagues who really
supported me and lucky to have serve in
an organization Armed Forces which in
spite of all odds they supported me and
they did not discriminate after the
baton Mills but all this gives you a
strong foundation you have to build your
life on that and the architect of that
life is nobody you are the architect so
given a good foundation build a life and
work hard for it it is for you people to
cross all the boundaries and I wish all
of you all the best and pray all the boundaries which are they
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