-Pratyusha Mukherjee
The Indian Army who are always made more than a billion people of the Motherland feel safe by guarding India’s International borders with their selfless sacrifice and dedication has also been very prominent with its contribution towards sports helping the country provide some of the best athletes on the global stage.
For the first time in the history of the Indian Army, a woman from Madhya Pradesh, the daughter of a dry cleaner, has risen to the rank of Subedar, a junior commissioned officer post traditionally dominated by men. Subedar Preeti Rajak, a trap shooter who has represented India on global stages, now carries a rank that reflects both her sporting achievements and her service to the Army.
Preeti, born 6 November 2002 , is an Indian shooter who specializes in the trap event. She is a JCO in the Indian Army, where she became the first woman to attain the rank of Subedar.Rajak has represented India in various international shooting competitions.
Rajak represented the senior Indian team from 2022. In August 2023, she represented Indian trap team in the World Shotgun Championship at Baku, Azerbaijan. Earlier on May 27 and 28, she participated in the Shotgun World Cup at Almaty, Kazakhstan.[5][6] In May 2023, she also took part in the Shotgun World Cup in Cairo, Egypt and also represented India at the Shotgun World Cup at Doha in March 2023.
In September 2022, she took part in the trap event at the Junior World Shotgun Championships at Osijek, Croatia.In July 2022, she represented India in the trap events of the World Shotgun Championships at Changwon, South Korea. In May 2022, she was part of the Senior India team that won silver in the ISSF Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany.
In July 2019, she was part of the Indian team at the Junior World Shotgun Championships at Lonato, Italy.
The Indian Army contributed significantly to Preeti Rajak’s success by providing a structured environment, world-class training facilities, and crucial support that enabled her to excel both as a soldier and an international-level trap shooter.
Key contributions include:
Enlistment as a Meritorious Sportswoman: Preeti Rajak was able to join the Corps of Military Police in December 2022 as a Havildar under the “meritorious sportswoman” category, a first for a woman in the shooting discipline. This provided her with a stable career path while she pursued her sport.
Access to Elite Training:
The Army gave her access to the Army Marksmanship Unit (AMU) in Mhow, an elite training establishment that is part of the Army’s Mission Olympics Wing. This facility offered the rigorous physical and mental training, state-of-the-art infrastructure, equipment, and expert guidance needed to compete at the highest levels.
Financial & Logistical Support:
The Army, sometimes in partnership with entities like the Reliance Foundation, ensured she had the necessary support for nutrition, mental conditioning, and fitness, which are key for professional athletes.
Recognition and Motivation:
The Army officially recognized her achievements, which served as a major motivational factor. Her outstanding performance at the 2023 Asian Games, where she won a silver medal in the women’s trap team event, led to an out-of-turn promotion to the rank of Subedar on January 27, 2024.
Breaking Barriers:
By promoting her to the rank of Subedar—making her the Indian Army’s first-ever woman in this junior commissioned officer position—the institution actively challenged traditional gender norms and paved the way for greater female participation in leadership and combat-support roles. This visibility made her a role model for aspiring young women across the nation.
Through these contributions, the Indian Army not only nurtured her individual talent but also helped her shatter professional and social barriers, allowing her to focus on her goal of representing India at international events like the Olympics.
(All articles are original works of Ms.Pratyusha Mukherjee, and some news media also shared the same. Any modification or usage needs to be approved by her only)
