Daughters of two Punjab farmers commissioned as flying officers

Chandigarh : Two farmers' daughters from Mai Bhago Armed Forces Preparatory Institute (AFPI) for Girls, Mohali on Saturday were commissioned as Flying Officers from the Air Force Academy, Dundigal, Hyderabad.

Flying Officer Ivraj Kaur has been commissioned as a helicopter pilot while Flying Officer Prabhsimran Kaur has been commissioned in the education branch of the IAF. Flying Officer Ivraj Kaur, who will be joining the Flying Branch as a Helicopter Pilot, is the daughter of S Jaspreet Singh, a farmer from Rupnagar District, while Flying Officer Prabhsimran Kaur's father, S Paramjit Singh, who is also a farmer, hails from Gurdaspur District. Prabhsimran will be joining the Education Branch of the Air Force," the release stated.

Congratulating both the girls for their remarkable feat, Punjab Employment Generation, Skill Development and Training Minister, Aman Arora said that the fathers of both the girls are proud farmers and their success will surely spur children from the small towns and villages of Punjab to explore opportunities in serving the nation as commissioned officers in defense services.

"Mai Bhago AFPI, working under the umbrella of the Employment Generation, Skill Development and Training department, has a fully residential campus with state-of-the-art infrastructure and the only one of its kind in the country," he added.

Responding to the aspirations of girls from the State to serve the nation, the Punjab Government led by Chief Minister S Bhagwant Mann has recently approved a 'Path Breaking' initiative of starting an NDA Preparatory Wing for Girls at Mai Bhago AFPI, from July 2023 onwards, the Cabinet Minister informed.

Expressing happiness over the two alumni being commissioned as Flying Officers, the Director of Mai Bhago AFPI Major General Jasbir Singh Sandhu, AVSM (Retd.) said that this achievement will further boost their efforts of sending more girls from the state to the various armed forces pre-commission training academies.

He also extended his best wishes to these newly commissioned officers for their bright future ahead in the Indian Air Force.