Admiral is a four-star naval

flag officer A flag officer is a commissioned officer in a nation's armed forces senior enough to be entitled to fly a flag to mark the position from which the officer exercises command. The term is used differently in different countries: *In many countr ...

rank in the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates sig ...

. It is the highest active rank in the Indian Navy. Admiral ranks above the

three-star rank An officer of three-star rank is a senior commander in many of the armed services holding a rank described by the NATO code of OF-8. The term is also used by some armed forces which are not NATO members. Typically, three-star officers hold the ...

of vice admiral and below the

five-star rank A five-star rank is the highest military rank in many countries.Oxford English Dictionary (OED), 2nd Edition, 1989. "five" ... "five-star adj., ... (b) U.S., applied to a general or admiral whose badge of rank includes five stars;" The rank is t ...

of admiral of the fleet, which has never been awarded or held. An admiral may be referred to as a full admiral or four-star admiral to distinguish them from lower

ranks like vice admiral and rear admiral. The rank is held by the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), the professional head of the

, since 1968. The rank may also be held by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) if the holder is a serving Indian Navy flag officer. Admiral

Adhar Kumar Chatterji Admiral Adhar Kumar Chatterji (4 March 1914 – 6 August 2001) was an Admiral in the Indian Navy. He served as the 6th Chief of the Naval Staff, from 4 March 1966, until 28 February 1970. He was the first Indian officer of the navy to hold ...

was the first Indian officer to hold the rank of full admiral. The current Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) and only full admiral in the

Indian Armed Forces The Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Armed Forces are supported by ...

is Admiral R. Hari Kumar. The equivalent rank in the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...

and in the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial w ...

air chief marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer originating from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. An air chief marshal is equivalent to an Admir ...

Insignia

The flag of an admiral is a

Saint George's Cross In heraldry, Saint George's Cross, the Cross of Saint George, is a red cross on a white background, which from the Late Middle Ages became associated with Saint George, the military saint, often depicted as a crusader. Associated with the cru ...

upon which is superimposed a navy-blue ''

Dharmachakra The dharmachakra (Sanskrit: धर्मचक्र; Pali: ''dhammacakka'') or wheel of dharma is a widespread symbol used in Indian religions such as Hinduism, Jainism, and especially Buddhism.John C. Huntington, Dina Bangdel, ''The Circle o ...

'' (''Wheel of Law''). The badges of rank have a crossed sword and baton over four eight-pointed stars and the Ashoka emblem above, on a golden shoulder board. An admiral wears

gorget patches Gorget patches (collar tabs, collar patches) are an insignia in the form of paired patches of cloth or metal on the collar of a uniform (gorget), used in the military and civil service in some countries. Collar tabs sign the military rank (group o ...

which are golden patches with four white stars and additional oak leaves under them. In addition to this, the double-breasted

reefer jacket A pea coat (or peacoat, pea jacket, pilot jacket, reefer jacket) is an outer coat, generally of a navy-coloured heavy wool, originally worn by sailors of European and later American navies. Pea coats are characterized by short length, broad la ...

has four golden sleeve stripes consisting of a broad band with three narrower bands.

Appointment and term length

Appointments to the office of CNS are made by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), which is chaired by the

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...

. The term length of the Chief of Naval Staff is three years or until the age of 62 of the holder, whichever is earlier.

Order of precedence

An admiral ranks at No. 12 on the

Indian order of precedence The order of precedence of the Republic of India is a list in which the functionaries, dignitaries and officials are listed for ceremonial purposes and has no legal standing and does not reflect the Indian presidential line of succession or the c ...

, along with the

CDS The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in Octo ...

and the Chiefs of Staff of the

and

(the COAS and the CAS). An admiral is at pay level 18, equivalent to

Cabinet Secretary of India The Cabinet Secretary is the top-most executive official and senior-most civil servant of the Government of India. The Cabinet Secretary is the ''ex-officio'' head of the Civil Services Board, the Cabinet Secretariat, the Indian Administrativ ...

(at No. 11 on the warrant of precedence), with a monthly pay of ₹250,000 (US$3,500).

References

Bibliography

* {{Indian Navy India Navy Indian Navy Military ranks of the Indian Navy Four-star officers

Insignia

Appointment and term length

Order of precedence

See also

References

Bibliography