Colonel Seema Mishra is set to take over as the first woman principal of the country’s oldest Sainik School—Captain Manoj Pandey UP Sainik School, Lucknow—after the Uttar Pradesh government issued her appointment orders on Wednesday. The decision follows months of strong follow-up and intervention by the Army to get the long-pending appointment cleared.
With the issuance of the new order, the way is now clear to relieve Colonel Rajesh Raghav, who has been serving as principal since January 2021.
According to officials, the Ministry of Defence had earlier sent a panel of three serving officers for the principal’s post, wherein the selection committee—headed by the Chief Secretary—approved the name of Col Seema Mishra. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath subsequently endorsed the proposal.
Col Mishra, an experienced officer of the Army Education Corps, previously served as Vice-Principal of Sainik School Kapurthala and is presently posted with an AEC unit in Ambala.
The selection process gained urgency after the Army issued a suo motu movement order for Col Raghav when repeated reminders to the state government failed to secure his release or the appointment of a replacement.
Adding to Col Mishra’s inspirational journey is her personal story of sacrifice. Her husband, Colonel Nitish Rai of the Bihar Regiment, laid down his life in 2010 during a UN peacekeeping deployment in Afghanistan. He was awarded the Shaurya Chakra for his gallantry after saving several lives in a bombing near the Indian Embassy in Kabul.
The Defence Ministry had requested Col Raghav’s release nearly two years ago and forwarded a panel of three officers—Col Seema Mishra, Col Vikas Samyal, and Col Kamal Kapoor. While Col Kapoor has since been posted to the Northern Command, the selection committee chose Col Mishra to lead the prestigious institution.
Col Mishra’s appointment marks yet another significant milestone for the iconic UP Sainik School, which admitted girl cadets for the first time in 2018.
