Chief of the Naval Staff (India)
Chief of the Naval Staff (India)
CNS | |
---|---|
Flag of the Chief of the Naval Staff | |
Seat | Central Secretariat |
Appointer | The President of India |
Term length | 3 years or at the age of 62, whichever is earlier. |
Formation | 1 April 1955 |
First holder | Admiral Sir Charles Thomas Mark Pizey |
Deputy | Vice Chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral Karambir Singh |
The Chief of the Naval Staff is the commander and the highest-ranking officer in the Indian Navy. The position is abbreviated CNS in Indian Navy cables and communication, and usually held by a four-star officer in the rank of Admiral.
The current CNS is Admiral Sunil Lanba. The 23rd Navy Chief, he took over from Admiral Robin K. Dhowan, who retired on 31 May 2016 after four decades of service from the navy.[1][2]
Office of the Chief of the Naval Staff
The office of the Chief of the Naval Staff was created by The Commanders-In-Chief (Change in Designation) Act of the Indian Parliament in 1955, replacing the erstwhile office of the Commander-in-Chief, Indian Navy.[3] The office is based at South Block in Raisina Hill.
Appointments to the office are made by the President of India. The Chief of the Naval Staff generally reaches superannuation upon serving three years or at the age of 62, whichever is earlier.
Appointees
Commander-in-Chief, Indian Navy (1950-1955)
No. | Name | Rank | Photo | Appointment Date | Left Office | Decorations |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Sir William Edward Parry | Admiral | 26 January 1950 | 13 October 1951 | KCB | |
2 | Sir Charles Thomas Mark Pizey | Admiral | 13 October 1951 | 31 March 1955 | KBE, CB, DSO & Bar | |
Chiefs of the Naval Staff (1955–present)
No. | Name | Rank | Photo | Appointment Date | Left Office | Decorations |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Sir Charles Thomas Mark Pizey | Admiral | 1 April 1955 | 21 July 1955 | KBE, CB, DSO & Bar | |
2 | Sir Stephen Hope Carlill | Vice Admiral | 21 July 1955 | 21 April 1958 | KBE, CB, DSO | |
3 | Ram Dass Katari | Vice Admiral | 22 April 1958 | 4 June 1962 | - | |
4 | Bhaskar Sadashiv Soman | Vice Admiral | 4 June 1962 | 3 March 1966 | - | |
5 | Adhar Kumar Chatterji | Admiral | 3 March 1966 | 28 February 1970 | - | |
6 | Sardarilal Mathradas Nanda | Admiral | 28 February 1970 | 28 February 1973 | Padma Vibhushan, PVSM, AVSM | |
7 | Sourendra Nath Kohli | Admiral | 1 March 1973 | 29 February 1976 | Padma Bhushan, PVSM | |
8 | Jal Cursetji | Admiral | 1 March 1976 | 1 March 1979 | PVSM | |
9 | Ronald Lynsdale Pereira | Admiral | 1 March 1979 | 28 February 1982 | PVSM, AVSM | |
10 | Oscar Stanley Dawson | Admiral | 1 March 1982 | 30 November 1984 | PVSM, AVSM, ADC | |
11 | Radhakrishna Hariram Tahiliani | Admiral | 1 December 1984 | 30 November 1987 | PVSM, AVSM | |
12 | Jayant Ganpat Nadkarni | Admiral | 1 December 1987 | 30 November 1990 | PVSM, AVSM, NM, VSM, ADC | |
13 | Laxminarayan Ramdas | Admiral | 1 December 1990 | 30 September 1993 | PVSM, AVSM, VrC, VSM, ADC | |
14 | Vijai Singh Shekhawat | Admiral | 1 October 1993 | 30 September 1996 | PVSM, AVSM, VrC, ADC | |
15 | Vishnu Bhagwat | Admiral | 1 October 1996 | 30 December 1998 | PVSM, AVSM, ADC | |
16 | Sushil Kumar | Admiral | 30 December 1998 | 29 December 2001 | PVSM, AVSM, YSM, NM, VSM, ADC | |
17 | Madhvendra Singh | Admiral | 29 December 2001 | 31 July 2004 | PVSM, AVSM, ADC | |
18 | Arun Prakash | Admiral | 31 July 2004 | 31 October 2006 | PVSM, AVSM, VrC, VSM, ADC | |
19 | Sureesh Mehta | Admiral | 31 October 2006 | 31 August 2009 | PVSM, AVSM, ADC | |
20 | Nirmal Kumar Verma | Admiral | 31 August 2009 | 31 August 2012 | PVSM, AVSM | |
21 | Devendra Kumar Joshi | Admiral | 31 August 2012 | 26 February 2014 | PVSM, AVSM, YSM, NM, VSM, ADC | |
22 | Robin K Dhowan | Admiral | 17 April 2014[4] | 31 May 2016 | PVSM, AVSM, YSM, ADC | |
23 | Sunil Lanba | Admiral | 31 May 2016 | To date | PVSM, AVSM, ADC |
See also
References
- ↑ "The Commanders-In-Chief (Change in Designation) Act, 1955". VakilNo1.com. Retrieved 18 October 2011.
- ↑ Acting CNS from 26 February 2014 to 17 April 2014, with the rank of Vice-Admiral