The ‘Alankrit’ parade of 23 nursing cadets of IX batch, College of Nursing, Command Hospital (Eastern Command) Kolkata was held in Yogendra Singh parade ground today on 15 February 2023. Maj Gen Shivinder Singh, Commandant, Command Hospital (EC) was the reviewing officer.
The ceremony was further graced by the presence of Brig Lissamma PV, Brig MNS(EC), Brig Sudharmma Devi P, Principal Matron Command Hospital (EC), senior officers, and proud parents of the cadets. The newly commissioned MNS officers displayed allegiance to their profession by taking oath to serve the country and mankind delivered to them by Col R K Bhatti, Principal, College of Nursing. Lt Col Rajwinder Kaur was the officer-in-charge of the commissioning ceremony. The batch is laudable for their exemplary results in their final examination. Rolling trophy, medals, and cash prize were awarded to Lt Sakshi Dumka for standing first in the final year WBUHS exam 2022, best all-round student to Lt Pinki Yadav and best clinical nurse to Lt Purnima Bhatt.
The MNS officers are posted to military hospitals of tri forces Army, Air Force, and Navy. The MNS has its origins in the year 1888 when a batch of 10 British nurses landed in India to organise nursing in Indian military hospitals. It was constituted as an all women, all officer corps and to date it remains so. It is moreover a lesser-known fact that the first woman officer in the Indian Armed Forces to attain two-star rank back in the year 1976 is Maj Gen Gertrude Alice Ram, PVMS, Matron-in-Chief of MNS. The Nursing officers have shown their mettle not only in the world wars, but also in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.