From Army to Navy to Air Force: Surgeon Vice Admiral Arti Sarin, DG AFMS reveals what she learnt from each service

At She Shakti 2025, the spotlight is on women who are leading from the frontlines. In an inspiring segment, Firstpost’s Managing Editor Palki Sharma, spoke to Surgeon Vice Admiral Arti Sarin, Director General of the Armed Forces Medical Services (DG AFMS), about her path to a historic leadership position.

Surgeon VAdm Sarin has a rare distinction to her name: she has served in all three branches of the Indian armed forces. She served as a lieutenant to captain in the Indian Army, from surgeon lieutenant to surgeon vice admiral in the Indian Navy, and was an air marshal in the Indian Air Force as well.

The flag officer, who also has the distinction of being the first woman to be appointed as DG AFMS, spoke about the lessons in leadership from her time in each service.

“I started in the Army very young. But I think the Armed Forces confer leadership on their officers very early. Of course you have a small medical inspection room that you take care of. That starts your path to looking after a place both administratively and also looking after patients. So, I learnt a little bit of that kind of leadership there, and then I moved on,” she said.

Surgeon VAdm Sarin, who spent 36 years in the Navy as part of the AFMS, spoke about how postings in remote locations taught her how to survive with less resources and how to communicate, among other things.

She went on to say, “I moved into the Command Hospital in Pune. The good thing about AFMS is that since it is a tri-services organisation, we move smoothly between Army, Navy, and Air Force. I’ve served in Army hospitals in naval uniform for 12 years.”

Watch Surgeon Vice Admiral Arti Sarin, Director General of the Armed Forces Medical Services, in conversation with @palkisu at News18’s #SheShakti2025. pic.twitter.com/nfVlwnFby0

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She mentioned that over the years, leadership in medicine transformed into leadership in administration.

Although the flag officer served only a short time in the Indian Air Force, she learnt key lessons there. “I learnt a lot from the aviators[…]Learnt to be very precise, very quick, very professional,” she said.