THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The first batch of 10 girl students joined the Sainik School, Kazhakootam on Wednesday. Seven of them are from Kerala and two hail from Bihar while one is from UP. Col Dhirendra Kumar, the new principal of the school, convened a special school assembly to usher in the new students. Until Wednesday, ever since the foundation stone of the only Sainik School in the state had been laid in 1962, the elite institution remained out of bounds for girl students.
The first-ever batch of girls was admitted after clearing the All-India Sainik School Entrance Examination 2021. Col Dhirendra Kumar addressed the cadets and conveyed his wishes on their academic success and comfortable stay. Over the past year, the school’s infrastructure was upgraded significantly to receive the girl cadets.
The renovated temporary accommodation for the girl cadets and dormitory are nearing completion.
Admission of girl cadets to Sainik Schools was successfully experimented by the Sainik School Society in Mizoram during the 2018-19 academic year. Following this, the various other states began to admit girls to their respective Sainik schools .
The Centre’s aim was to promote the spirit among girls to join armed forces, thereby endorsing women’s empowerment. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his 75th Independence Day speech announced that from the current academic year, all the 33 Sainik Schools will throw open their doors to girl cadets.
Based on this, 10 per cent of the total seats at all Sainik Schools will be reserved for girls during the intake every year.