Vice admiral (India)

Vice Admiral is a Three Star Flag Officer rank in the Indian Navy. It is the second-highest active rank in the Indian Navy. Vice Admiral ranks above the Two Star rank of Rear Admiral and below the Four Star rank of Admiral, which is held by the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS).

Vice Admiral
Flag of a Vice Admiral
Rank Insignia of a Vice Admiral
Country India
Service branch Indian Navy
AbbreviationVAdm
RankThree-star rank
Next higher rankAdmiral
Next lower rankRear Admiral
Equivalent ranksLieutenant General (Indian Army)
Air Marshal (Indian Air Force)

From 1948 to 1968, the appointment of Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), the professional head of the Indian Navy was held by a Vice Admiral. The position of the CNS was upgraded from Vice Admiral to Admiral in 1968. The first officer to hold the rank was Adm Adhar Kumar Chatterji who was promoted to the rank while he served as the CNS.[1]

The equivalent rank in the Indian Army is Lieutenant General and in the Indian Air Force is Air Marshal.

Officers in the rank of Vice Admiral hold important appointments at the Naval Commands and at the Naval Headquarters.

Vice Admirals Karambir Singh and P N Murugesan in Vice Admiral's uniform

Senior Vice Admirals who are in the C-in-C grade (Naval Commanders), are considered to be in a grade higher than other Vice Admirals. They hold the senior-most appointments like the Vice Chief of the Naval Staff and the heads of the three naval commands (stlyed Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief). The three FOC-in-C appointments are:

Insignia

The badges of rank have a Crossed sword and baton over three eight-pointed stars and the Ashoka emblem above, on a golden shoulder board.

A Vice Admiral wears Gorget patches which are Golden patches with Three white stars. Naval Commanders in the C-in-C grade have additional oak leaves under the three white stars.

In addition to this, the double-breasted reefer jacket have three golden sleeve stripes consisting of a broad band with two narrower bands.

Order of precedence

A Vice Admiral in the C-in-C grade ranks at No. 23 on the Indian order of precedence, along with Lieutenant Generals of the Indian Army and Air Marshals of the Indian Air Force in the C-in-C grade. The other Vice Admirals rank at No. 24 in the order of precedence.[2]

Vice Admirals in the C-in-C grade are at the Apex pay scale (pay level 17), with a monthly pay of ₹225,000 (US$3,100). Other Vice Admirals, in the HAG+ pay scale (pay level 16) draw lesser, depending on the years in service. However, since they should not draw equivalent or more than the next higher level, the renumeration is capped at ₹224,000.[3][4]

See also

References
  1. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Navy Branch)". The Gazette of India. 23 March 1968. p. 245.
  2. "President's Secretariat" (PDF). Office of the President of India. Rajya Sabha. 1979-08-26. Retrieved 2010-08-05.
  3. "Wayback Machine" (PDF). 20 November 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 November 2015.
  4. DelhiJune 29, India Today Web Desk New; June 29, India Today Web Desk New; Ist, India Today Web Desk New. "7th Pay Commission cleared: What is the Pay Commission? How does it affect salaries?". India Today.
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