ADILABAD: Imagine commandos who read forests like maps, disarm explosives with precision and storm secret bases, all while redefining gender norms. Meet Team Shivangi, Nirmal’s groundbreaking women’s commando unit, brainchild of Superintendent of Police G Janaki Sharmila and launched by Women & Child Welfare Minister Dansari Anasuya alias Seethakka.
From vertical rope climbs to AI-driven weaponry, their training was a masterclass in modern warfare, capped by a real-world simulation programme: a high-stakes rescue of missing women in Mamada forest’s wilderness. With specialists carved into roles — surveillance, combat and signals — Shivangi isn’t just a team; it’s a symphony of sweat, strategy and sheer will.
Team Shivangi comprises specially trained women police commandos, selected and rigorously trained for 45 days — on par with their male counterparts.
In addition to standard tactical preparation, the team was trained in map reading and navigating without maps, ambush and counter-ambush operations, field signals, reconnaissance, forest navigation, enemy movement analysis and locating and attacking covert bases. Each commando has also been assigned a specialised skill, ranging from weapon expertise and field signals to surveillance systems and warfare strategy.
Their training also included physical fitness, endurance running, vertical rope climbing, survival techniques, advanced combat skills in martial arts, handling of explosives and firing with high-tech weaponry.
Minister Seethakka praised the SP’s vision when launching the team, calling it a landmark step in women-led policing. “The belief that women should lead from the front is truly reflected in this initiative.
The courage and commitment of this team are commendable,” she said, urging other districts across the state to replicate the Shivangi model. “Training should be intense, yes, but also fulfilling. It should instil pride, not pressure.”
Seethakka also appreciated the team’s swift and successful operation in tracing four women who had gone missing in the Mamada forest recently. The Shivangi commandos now stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the country’s elite forces — the Army, Navy, MARCOS, NSG, and SPG — and with Telangana’s own Greyhounds.
“With the formation of Team Shivangi, the SP has not only introduced a pioneering idea but also laid the foundation for a new era in policing, where women are not just equal but exceptional,” said Seethakka. “This is more than a team. It’s a movement.”