Major Dr Payal Chhabra, a surgeon serving at the Army hospital in Ladakh, has become the first woman surgeon to join the elite Para Special Forces of the Indian Army. She completed her training and received the coveted Maroon Beret at the Paratroopers Training School in Agra, Uttar Pradesh on Thursday.

Here are five facts about Major Dr Payal Chhabra.

• Major Dr Payal Chhabra hails from Haryana and holds an MBBS degree and MS surgery degree. After completing her education, she became a senior resident doctor at the surgery department of Kalpana Chawla Government Medical College in Karnal, Haryana, in 2020.
• Her father, Dr Rajender Chabra, told The Times of India that Dr Payal Chhabra always nurtured the dream of serving the nation. She got commissioned into the Indian Army as a Captain in January 2021 and later got promoted to the rank of Major.
• Her first posting was at the Army Hospital in Ambala Cantonment. She later also served at the Army Hospital in Khardungla in the Leh district of Ladakh. At present, she is posted s a specialist surgeon at an Army hospital in Ladakh.
• Major Dr Payal Chhabra’s father said she completed her Para Special Forces probation while working as a surgeon at the army hospital.
• The surgeon underwent training at the Paratroopers Training School in Agra to become a Para Commando.