Positive change is good for ADF

Flight Lieutenant Hardik Mehta

30 years, Systems Engineer ALSPO Royal Australian Air Force Base (RAAF) Richmond

An engineer’s first love is always technology and specialised eq Lt Hardik Mehta, it was no different. An engineer, Hardik came Gujarat as an international student to pursue his Masters in En RMIT University. After obtaining his Permanent Residency, he de Australian Air Force because of the highly specialised technolo equipment the service offers.

“As an Engineer, one would like to work on cutting edge technol equipment, and the RAAF obviously owns a lot of it. RAAF also o career progression path and first rate training to be successful job. A strong desire to serve the country I live in combined wi made the decision to join the RAAF easy,” says the officer, who RAAF as an Electronics Engineering Officer in October in 2006.

After he saw a couple of recruitment advertisements on TV which to the Defence website, Hardik found a wealth of information ab Australian Defence Force (ADF). He underwent four and a half mo at the Officers’ Training School, which was previously in Melbou officers, he was also taught to operate basic weapons and carry activity in case the base is attacked.

After completing training, Hardik’s first posting was with Numbe where he was in charge of various maintenance workshops and sup 70 technicians. He currently works as a System Safety Engineer Lift Systems Program Office (ASLPO), which provides logistical a support and new capability acquisition for the Air Lift Group’s of C-130H and C-130J Hercules weapon systems. He also overlooks day maintenance of aircraft.

Flt Lt Mehta has been to Indonesia as part of the joint exercises between the Australian and Indonesian governments, where he spent time with other officers

A soldier and a medico Captain Dr Nalini Rao

46 years, General Practitioner - Training Medics, medicals for soldiers

Being a full-time mom and juggling a medical profession is far from easy. But that is exactly what Dr Nalini Rao, currently a doctor ‘in reserve’ for the Australian Army, does. Hailing from a family deeply involved in social service –her grandfather Thakur Kundan Singh Kush was an Arya Samaji pioneer from Sahanpur, Uttar Pradesh and credited with starting the first Indian girls’ school in Fiji – Dr Rao’s inclination to service is therefore, not unusual. Her role models in life have been her mother Dr Uma Rao, who was one of the first three girls to graduate from the Fiji School of Medicine; and her aunt Mrs Usha Rai, who was Principal of the DAV Girls College and a member of the Women’s Army Cadets in Bangalore in the 1950s.

Born in Fiji, Nalini migrated to Australia in 1988 and she did her Masters in Molecular Biology at the Queensland University of Technology. After completing her MBBS, she worked in rural Queensland, from Mt Isa in the west to Thursday Island and Weipa in the north, to Bowen and many towns in between. Weipa was her first tryst with the Australian Army, where she joined as a Commissioned Officer with the Australian Defence Force Army Reserve with the Rank of a Captain in 2002.

“I later moved to Townsville and started doing medicals for soldiers, taking part in training exercises like going into the bush to do mock resuscitations, along with learning to put up a “hoochie” (sleeping tent), radio and weapons handling and navigation skills. I then moved to Western Australia for three years, where I was based at Irwin Barracks in Perth,” she says, adding that she worked as a part time soldier and also worked as a GP in an after-hours clinic.

Nalini underwent her officer training at Duntroon in Canberra in 2005, after which she regularly underwent soldier training, which included roughing it out in the bush – something which she enjoys. As part of the Combat Service Support Battalion, Nalini performed medicals, looked after soldiers and also had training in weaponry and shooting.

Speaking about her inspiration to work in the Army,

Richmond base to show them where he works and the kind of work

“They are all extremely proud that I work at the Australian Air

Nalini says, “I joined because I wanted to contribute to my country. Also, after September 11, I felt a deep need to assist during human crises. I was also influenced by a friend Major Kerry Ayres, who was a nurse in the Australian Army and whom I met working in Weipa. She spoke about the work involved and I was very keen to be a part of it, and learn new skills.”

When she declared her intention to join the Army, Nalini’s family was naturally surprised. “They were shocked about my decision, but at the same time proud. I was also one of the few women doctors of Indian descent to be a part of the Army. There were many Australian doctors and nurses but hardly any Indian women doctors,” she says.

However, she says that despite her origin, she has never felt non-white or non-Australian, because of the immense respect accorded to women in Defence. “I would love to see more girls of Indian descent work as doctors, nurses, medics or in any other capacity in the ADF as there are many opportunities and endless possibilities. Now would be a good time to join and also work overseas in conflict zones to gain experience in working in challenging environments,” says the medico, emphasising, “Women shouldn’t be worried about working in the Army as they are well-respected and accepted.”

Currently Nalini is inactive and has been placed on Army ‘reserve’, while she works as a GP in WA, because of her interest in working with rural Australians, while also devoting time to her two-and-a-half-year old daughter, whom she adores. “There are not many doctors here in rural areas and it is very challenging to work here. Also, my daughter is very young and is quite attached to me. I want to wait till she is older and I’ll resume my role in the Army once we move back to the city,” says the doctor, who works with Indigenous Australians.

Despite her Fijian ancestry and long years in Australia, Nalini says they have kept their Indian roots intact and celebrate a number of Indian festivals, including Diwali. “I love music and speak Hindi and Urdu, and I wear a sari at any opportunity. In fact, I am now teaching my daughter to speak Hindi, so she also knows the language,” says Dr Rao, whose mother is from Uttar Pradesh and her father is from Andhra Pradesh, while her husband is of Scottish heritage.

Nalini hopes to see more Indian women in the Australian Defence Force and also hopes to do an exchange programme in the future to India and Fiji, if the opportunity arises.