She has served for over 36 years in the Indian Navy and is the first woman officer to rise to this rank directly in the Indian Navy
She became the first woman to reach the rank of Lieutenant General in the Indian Army in 2004
She was the first woman officer to lead a training contingent of the Indian Army at Force 18, a multinational exercise held in 2016
She was the first lady cadet to join the Indian Army in 1992, fulfilling her lifelong dream as a law graduate
She was the first woman to become a three-star officer in the Indian Air Force, and the first lady Air Marshal
She was awarded the Sena Medal for gallantry in 2011, becoming India’s first female officer to receive this honor
She is one of the three women who have achieved the three-star rank in the Armed Forces, and a role model for aspiring female officers
She won the Best All-Round Cadet award and the coveted “Sword of Honour” in 2010, beating 244 fellow cadets
She became the first IAF woman pilot to train for Sarang in 2006. She was among the first to join the indigenous Advanced Light Helicopter squad
She was the first woman to win a gold medal in the Indian Army, joining the first-ever batch of women cadets in the Indian Army in 1992