Lieutenant General Ati Salin was appointed as the next Director General of the Department of Armed Forces Medical Services (DGAFMS) on Tuesday. She became the first-ever female officer to take over as the head of the tri-services armed forces medical services and the highest-ranking female officer ever in the Indian Armed Forces.
DGAFMS is directly responsible to the Department of Defense for overall medical policy matters relating to the Armed Forces.
Lieutenant General Sarin joined the Army in 1985 and graduated from the Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune. She holds two postgraduate degrees in diagnostic radiology and radiation oncology and is trained in gamma knife surgery.
During her career, she held many key positions. She has served as Director Medical Services, Indian Navy and Indian Air Force. Vice Admiral Salin has commanded two major units – INHS Asvini and AFMC and served as Command Medical Officer of Southern Naval Command (SNC) and Western Naval Command (WNC).
She is an advocate for promoting young women to join the armed forces and was recently appointed by the Supreme Court to a national task force tasked with developing safe working conditions and protocols for medical professionals.
In July 2024, President Droupadi Murmu awarded her the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) in recognition of her distinguished services.
