The three main branches, Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Navy, and Bangladesh Air Force, work together to safeguard the sovereignty of the nation across land, sea, and sky.

For many youngsters, joining the defence forces is not just a career choice but a lifelong passion. The dream begins with a strong desire to serve the country with honour and pride.

Whether marching across challenging territory, sailing through oceans, or flying high above the clouds, each branch of the military offers a comprehensive pathway to protect the nation.

However, fulfilling this dream demands dedication and hard work. Days of discipline, sacrifice, and continuous preparation shape a civilian into a capable defender of the country.

In this regard, I interviewed three Lieutenants from the three main defence forces to understand their paths and the ways of preparing for IQ, physical endurance, mental strength, and surviving ISSB. Due to strict codes of conduct, their names are deliberately omitted.

Upon talking with the Lieutenant from the Bangladesh Navy, she expressed her journey of perseverance in becoming not just an officer of the sea but also achieving this feat as a female.

Initially, she decided to pursue the Bangladesh Navy to support her family. “That was the fastest way to start earning for me at that time.” As such, she started taking preparations.

“For IQ, I took help from coaching classes arranged by my college, as well as from my brother-in-law, who was serving in the Navy at that time. He also helped me a lot.”

She faced challenges in terms of physical endurance. She said, “The outside world is not fit for females. To thrive, to survive, we normally need to do double the hardship compared to men to become their equal. In BNA, training for males and females is the same. No variations, no special treatment except for some very special cases regarding physical abilities. So, to be equal with a male cadet, all female cadets had to be extraordinary in our own way.”

To successfully pass the screening test, one needs to be witty and brutally honest, which saves a lot of trouble. The Navy just wants to know the inner self of a candidate.

“If clay is hard, then it can’t be shaped into any structure. But if it is soft, then it can be moulded into any shape you want. The Navy wants to see if I can be moulded into an officer or not. Nothing else.”

On the other hand, the preparation scenario is somewhat different for the officer at the Bangladesh Air Force. In 2021, because of COVID, his HSC exam was postponed, so he took a long time to prepare.

“Because of suffering from jaundice, I was physically weak after my preliminary exam. To overcome my physical weakness, I used to go to the gym twice for two hours a day. From 3 November to 6 November, I appeared in ISSB. Initially, I got a yellow card and was given one month for preparation. At that time, my HSC was also ongoing. The whole preparation process was quite tough for me.”

IQ is really important to get selected in the Bangladesh Air Force. In the preliminary round, there are about 100 marks in IQ, so extra preparation is required.

For IQ, the officer used to read a lot of books and newspapers. He said, “I had the tendency to fall into different situations and tried to overcome them. It enriched my IQ. There are also many books on IQ available in the market. Publications such as Dogers-Brothers, Phillip Curter, Cane Russell. Along with all this, storybooks also help a lot.”

He got a yellow card at first, so he had to take extra care of his physical performance. Listening to the instructions of his DP, he used to give 100 push-ups a day, which would sometimes exceed 500. Besides, hitting the gym twice a day was a regular habit.

“I had sometimes lost consciousness,” mentioned our BAF officer, due to hitting the gym twice a day and doing push-ups more than 500 times.

“I had stopped eating rice and used to maintain a strict diet at that time,” he added.

From the Bangladesh Army, he shared that he had got ISSB call-up letters from both the Army and Navy. He had to choose one. Prioritising his childhood dream of wearing a camouflage military combat uniform, he talked with his parents and finally decided to pursue the Army.

His way of preparing for the Army was different from the others.

He said, “I enrolled myself in a rapid coaching session for a week before my ISSB and used to give exams there. Besides, they used to take IQ practice sessions two to three times a day. I also had a Prism book with me from which I used to study and take ideas of previous year questions. I was fully focused during that one week before my ISSB. At that time, there was an app named ‘Revan IQ’ from which I had practised IQ and got almost 80% accuracy in common patterns.”

As the Army carries out service on the ground level, physical fitness is very important in BMA. The body must also align with BMI.

“Running is the foundation of all exercise. There’s a saying in the Army that ‘These two legs will give you commission.’”

There were several challenges he faced while preparing. In terms of goals, the dilemma of pursuing the Army or university was the main dichotomy.

“But the COVID period helped a lot in postponing HSC, and due to this delay and appearing in ISSB before HSC, I got a Green Card beforehand,” shared the Lieutenant.

The services bring both dignity and respect, but also require many sacrifices: sacrificing family, friends, and times of enjoyment when duty calls.

In the end, they serve the country, keeping responsibility in mind and putting the nation before everything else, even their own lives.