Who are Col Sofiya Qureshi and Wg Cdr Vyomika Singh? the officers who lead key military briefing on Operation Sindoor

In a significant development, India launched a series of precision air and ground strikes—code-named Operation Sindoor—on terrorist camps located in Pakistan on Wednesday (May 7). The operation comes as a direct response to the devastating terrorist attack in Pahalgam on April 22, in which 26 civilians, including one Nepali national, lost their lives.

In a powerful message of resolve and representation, and lending significance to the anti-terror operation's codename, two women officers from the Indian Armed Forces will lead the official press briefing on Operation Sindoor today.

Two young women officers of the Indian armed forces will undertake the press briefing: Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri will also be present at the vital press briefing, which comes amid a number of claims and counterclaims circulating on social media.

Here's all you need to know about the two officers of the Indian Armed Forces.

Colonel Qureshi is a trailblazer in the Indian Army. In March 2016, she made history as the first woman officer to lead an Indian Army contingent at a multinational military exercise—Exercise Force 18—hosted in Pune, India. This was the largest foreign military exercise ever conducted on Indian soil, involving 18 nations including ASEAN members, as well as the United States, China, Russia, Japan, Australia, South Korea, and New Zealand.

As a Lieutenant Colonel at the time, Qureshi stood out as the only woman officer to command a contingent among all participating forces.

Wing Commander Vyomika Singh is an officer of the Indian Air Force.

Singh is the first in her family to join the armed forces. Singh pursued her dream through the National Cadet Corps (NCC)—India's youth military training program. She was commissioned as a helicopter pilot and received a permanent commission in the flying branch in December 2019.

With over 2,500 flying hours, Wing Commander Singh has operated helicopters like the Chetak and Cheetah, flying in some of India’s most challenging environments, including Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast. She has played a vital role in numerous search and rescue missions, most notably in Arunachal Pradesh in November 2020, where her team conducted lifesaving operations in high-altitude, remote areas under extreme weather conditions.

Her service isn't limited to operational missions. In 2021, Singh was part of a tri-services all-women mountaineering expedition to Mt. Manirang (elevation: 21,650 feet). The expedition was widely recognized, including commendation from the Chief of Air Staff.

Operation Sindoor is a joint operation by the Indian Army, Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force against terrorist camps in Pakistan.

The Indian military confirmed that nine specific sites linked to terrorism were targeted.

In an official statement, the Minister of Defence said, "A little while ago, the Indian Armed Forces launched 'OPERATION SINDOOR', hitting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir from where terrorist attacks against India have been planned and directed."