Breaking All Barriers, Punjab’s Daughters Are Moving Forward: Mann Government Welcomed Female Firefighters, Inequality Ended Through Policy Change
Chandigarh, 7 November 2025 : Just like the country is celebrating the unstoppable spirit shown by our athletes and teams—like the historic momentum of the Indian cricket team—in the same way, the Punjab government is ensuring that this spirit of excellence is nurtured not only on the sports field but also in the public service sector. Under the decisive leadership of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, the state took a historic administrative step that deserves as much praise and appreciation as possible, and this step confirms its commitment to actively work for the dignity and empowerment of its women through long-pending amendments in Fire Brigade recruitment rules.
Punjab is the first state to actively recruit female firefighters. However, the government has recently amended the physical recruitment standards to make it easier to appoint women to these positions, and recruitment is expected to start soon. Earlier, strict physical test requirements, such as lifting 60 kilograms over a distance of 100 yards in one minute, meant that none of the approximately 1,400 women who applied for firefighter positions in 2022 could qualify for this job. And for several decades, the path to joining the frontline of fire and emergency services remained closed for thousands of qualified women due to an arbitrary, outdated system that had been in place since the 1970s. It was mandatory to lift 60 kilograms over a distance of 100 yards in one minute in the physical examination.
Women : Punjab Becomes First State to Ease Fire Service Rules
This strict and old standard showed that despite performing brilliantly in the written exam, female candidates were systematically disqualified during physical evaluation. The authorities had set this standard for the general male demographic and failed to consider the physical and biological differences in body structure. As a result, despite many applicants, they could not recruit a single woman. In this step, praised by advocacy groups and thousands of hopeful candidates, the state government directly intervened in the recruitment process. Recognizing that the true measure of capability is not from mass but from agility, skill, and pure courage, the Cabinet amended the rules for the first time in history, reducing the weight lifting requirement for women from 60 kilograms to 40 kilograms.
This progressive decision immediately opened doors of opportunity. It allowed female candidates to compete with greater fairness. Ultimately, they could pass the physical standards. The administration has made it clear. The era of symbolic inclusion is over. Now is the era of real, merit-based equality. The Punjab government has taken a progressive step and passed the Punjab Fire and Emergency Services Bill, 2024. The government has reduced the weight-lifting requirement for female candidates to 40 kilograms and has also provided some relaxation in height requirements. Thus, it has become the first state in India to implement such a change. This decision is expected to pave the way for hundreds of women. They will join the state’s fire department in the near future.
CM Mann’s Reform Gives Wings to Women’s Dreams in Fire Services
Simaranjit Kaur from Amritsar says, “My brother told me—sister, no matter how well you do in the written exam, that 60 kilos will block your way in the end. And truly, that’s what happened. I failed twice, both times because of the weight.” Then something changed. For the first time in history, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s government questioned these rules. The Cabinet decided—the weight requirement for women will be reduced from 60 kilos to 40 kilos. This wasn’t just a change in numbers. This was a decision to give wings to thousands of dreams. This was believing that strength is not just in weight, it’s in skill. It’s in agility. It’s in courage.
A senior Punjab official said that the government realized real capability is measured not by kilos, but by character.
Punjab’s Daughters Break Barriers, Join Fire Services Under CM Mann’s Reforms
After the new rules, for the first time dozens of female candidates were able to pass the physical test. Jaspreet, Simaranjit, and hundreds of girls like them will now become part of Punjab Fire and Emergency Services. They will be in uniform, on the frontline, fighting fires.The authorities of that era framed the old rules based on the belief that firefighting was only men’s work. But today’s women are proving that capability has no gender.
Respect for Physical Structure: Women and men have different physical structures. Accepting this is not weakness, it’s wisdom.
Focus on Merit: Now the test is not just about lifting weight, but about efficiency, speed, and practical skill.
Real Inclusion: This is not symbolic inclusion—this is real, merit-based equality. These daughters of Punjab will now extinguish fires. But before that, they extinguished outdated thinking in society. In its place, they lit the lamp of hope. This became possible because of the Mann government. They considered this and made the change to give these girls a chance to move forward.
