350 OTA cadets earn their stripes

Chennai:

In a glittering ceremony that marked the culmination of 49 weeks of rigorous and meticulous training, a total of 350 cadets marched in unison towards the final step to become young Lieutenants of the Indian Army.

The Passing Out Course comprised 70 Lady Cadets and 20 Foreign Cadets from Afghanistan.  The southern states are represented by 53 cadets, 11 of whom belong to Tamil Nadu and one from Chennai.

The impressive parade was reviewed by Lieutenant General Ashok Singh, Army Commander, Southern Command alongwith Lieutenant General SS Jog, Commandant, OTA, Chennai. 

The Reviewing Officer while addressing the parade reminded the cadets the amount of responsibilities they are going to shoulder while commanding the troops.  He appreciated the cadets for their excellent efforts to make the parade an impressive one.  He urged the cadets to dedicate themselves with utmost sincerity and devotion to uphold the honour and safety of the country.

The coveted Chief of Army Staff Banner was awarded to Basantar Company.  Senior Under Officer Kuldeep Singh Baduriya received the 'Sword of Honour' for standing First in overall Order of Merit were awarded to Academy Cadets Adjutant Yengal Dasu Rajesh and Junior Under Officer Nitin Singh Bisht respectively.

“The Military Academies instill confidence, character and competence needed to transcend the fear of life through a dynamic process.  The OTA Chennai is universally revered as a military institution which infuses key leadership qualities in young men and women in the age range of 21 to 26 coming from diverse regional and academic backgrounds", said Lieutenant General SS Jog the Commandant of OTA.

The cadets were pipped by their parents in front of the Parameshwaran Parade Ground.  The event was followed by an oath taking ceremony and National Anthem.  Apart from the President's Commission to lead the world's third largest Army, each of the newly commissioned Lieutenants would be awarded a Post Graduate Diploma in Defence Management and Strategic Studies by the University of Madras.

“We are really excited to join our units and want to experience the real life a soldier is undergoing… most of us will be going to borders where our units are deployed.” said a visibly elated JUO Kanishk Sethi who is a fourth generation officer and is commissioned into Mechanised Infantry.