Surgeon Vice Admiral Kavita Sahai assumed the role of Director General of Medical Services (Navy), shortly after the Ministry of Defence appointed the first female officer to serve as the Director General of Armed Forces Medical Services.
Prior to this appointment, Surgeon Sahai was the first woman Commandant of the AMC Centre & College in Lucknow and held the position of Officer in Charge of Records, according to officials from the Ministry of Defence. She is also notable for being the first female officer elected as Colonel Commandant of the Army Medical Corps.
An alumnus of the esteemed Armed Forces Medical College in Pune, Surgeon Vice Admiral Sahai has specialized in pathology and completed her super specialization in oncopathology at AIIMS, New Delhi. She has served as a Professor and head of the Department of Lab Sciences at the Army Hospital (Research and Referral) and Base Hospital in Delhi Cantonment. Additionally, she has held a professorship in the Department of Pathology at AFMC, Pune.
As reported by thehindubusinessline, surgeon Sahai has a keen interest in medical education and was awarded the prestigious FAIMER Fellowship for the advancement of medical education from Philadelphia, USA, during 2013-14
In recognition of her exemplary service, she has received the Sena Medal in 2024 and the Vishisht Seva Medal in 2018, along with commendations from the Chief of the Army Staff in 2008 and 2012, as well as from the GOC-in-C (Western Command) in 2010.