Western Naval Command
Crest of the Western Naval Command
Country India
Branch Indian Navy
TypeCommand
HeadquartersMumbai, Maharashtra
Commanders
FOC-in-CVice Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh, AVSM, NM
FOCWFRear Admiral C. R. Praveen Nair, NM
FOMARear Admiral Manish Chadha, VSM

The Western Naval Command is one of the three command–level formations of the Indian Navy.[1] It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. As the senior–most of the three formations,[2] the command is responsible for the all naval forces in the Arabian Sea and western parts of the Indian Ocean and the naval establishments on the west coast of India.

The Command was formed on 1 March 1968.[3] The Command is commanded by a Three Star Flag Officer of the rank of Vice Admiral with the title Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Command (FOC-in-C). Vice Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh is the current FOC-in-C WNC, who took over on 3 January 2024.[4]

History

After the independence and the partition of India on 15 August 1947, the ships and personnel of the Royal Indian Navy were divided between the Dominion of India and the Dominion of Pakistan. The division of the ships was on the basis of two-thirds of the fleet to India, one third to Pakistan.[5] Two new appointments were created, the Rear Admiral Commanding Indian Naval Squadron (RACINS), the commander of the surface fleet of the Navy, and the Commodore-in-Charge Bombay, a one-star officer who headed the shore establishments on the western coast. To bring the service more in line with other navies, on 1 May 1952 the Rear Admiral Commanding Indian Naval Squadron was re-designated Flag Officer Commanding (Flotillas), Indian Fleet,[6]

On 30 December 1957, the office of Flag Officer Commanding (Flotillas) was re-designated Flag Officer Commanding Indian Fleet (FOCIF), while the command of the shore establishments was upgraded to the Two Star appointment of Flag Officer Bombay (FOB) in June 1958.[7] The FOCIF and FOB reported to the Chief of the Naval Staff. On 1 March 1968, the FOB was upgraded to the Three Star of Vice Admiral and was re-designated Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command (FOC-in-C WNC). The Indian Fleet was renamed as Western Fleet with the Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet (FOCWF) reporting into the FOC-in-C WNC.[8][2]

Area of responsibility

The Western Naval Command (WNC) is the sword arm of the Indian Navy and naval operations conducted on the western seaboard would be central to the outcome of any conflict at sea against Pakistan. The Western Fleet is the two-star level operational formation of the Western Naval Command. It utilises Mumbai and Karwar as its home ports, with INS Kunjali, its HQ in Mumbai. The fleet at the WNC is based under Flag Officer Commanding Maharashtra Naval Area (FOMA) and provides naval defence in the sensitive north Arabian Sea adjacent to Pakistan. INS Kadamba, a large naval base, was constructed under Project Seabird and completed in 2005. This naval base, at Karwar in Karnataka, is used exclusively by the Indian Navy.[1]

Capabilities

INS Vikramaditya (R33) at sea.

The Flagship carrier of the Western Fleet is INS Vikramaditya. The WNC is equipped with submarine pens, a carrier dock and main maintenance dockyards. The Carrier Battle Group of the Western Fleet consists of INS Vikramaditya, Delhi class destroyers, Talwar class frigates, Brahmaputra class frigates, INS Kolkata, Indian navy's one of the most powerful destroyer[9] and Sindhughosh class submarines. The Naval Aviation is provided by MiG-29K fighters along with airborne early warning Kamov Ka-31 Helicopters.

Full-fledged shipbuilding facilities on the western seaboard include the Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai, the Goa Shipyard Limited and the Cochin Shipyard Ltd in Kerala, which is India's largest repair dry dock.

Organization

The Western Naval Command is organized as follows:[10]

Post Current Holder References
Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Vice Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh, AVSM, NM [4]
Chief of Staff Vice Admiral Sanjay Bhalla, NM [11]
Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet (FOCWF) Rear Admiral C. R. Praveen Nair, NM [12]
Flag Officer Commanding Maharashtra Naval Area (FOMA) Rear Admiral Manish Chadha, VSM [13]
Flag Officer Goa Area (FOGA) & Flag Officer Naval Aviation (FONA) Rear Admiral Vikram Menon, VSM [14]
Flag Officer Commanding Gujarat Naval Area (FOGNA) Rear Admiral Anil Jaggi [15]
Flag Officer Commanding Karnataka Naval Area (FOK) Rear Admiral K. M. Ramakrishnan VSM [16]
Flag Officer Defence Advisory Group (FODAG) Rear Admiral A. V. Bhave, VSM [17]
Admiral Superintendent Dockyard (ASD) - Mumbai Rear Admiral K. P. Arvindan, VSM [18]
Commodore Commanding Submarines (West) Commodore Anurag Srivastava [19]

Naval bases under Western Naval Command are the following[20]

Base City State/Territory Role
INS Dwarka Okha Gujarat Logistics and Maintenance support
INS Sardar Patel[21] Porbandar Logistics Support
INS Kadamba Karwar Karnataka Logistics and Maintenance support
INS Vajrakosh Naval ammunition and missile depot
INHS Patanjali Naval Hospital
INS Gomantak Vasco da gama Goa Logistics and Maintenance support
INS Hansa Dabolim Naval Air Station
INHS Jeevanti Vasco-da-gama Naval Hospital
INS Angre Mumbai Maharashtra Logistics and Administrative support
INS Abhimanyu MARCOS base
INS Agnibahu Missile boat squadron base
INHS Asvini Naval Hospital
INS Kunjali Naval Air Station
INS Shikra Naval Air Station
INS Tanaji Naval ammunition depot
INS Trata Coastal Missile Defense
INS Tunir Naval missile depot
INS Vajrabahu Submarine base

List of Commanders

Rank Name Appointment Date Left Office Notes References
Commodore-in-Charge Bombay (COMBAY)
Commodore Henry Richmond Inigo-Jones 15 August 1947 31 December 1950 Formerly Royal Indian Navy. [22]
R. M. T. Taylor 31 December 1950 March 1954 Seconded from the Royal Navy [23]
Ajitendu Chakraverti March 1954 16 November 1954 First Indian to hold the appointment. [24]
Adhar Kumar Chatterji 17 November 1954 November 1956 Later served as Chief of the Naval Staff. [25]
Bhaskar Sadashiv Soman November 1956 12 June 1958 Later served as Chief of the Naval Staff. [26][7]
Flag Officer Bombay (FOB)
Rear Admiral Bhaskar Sadashiv Soman 12 June 1958 April 1960 Later Chief of the Naval Staff. [27]
S. G. Karmarkar June 1960 June 1964 [28][29]
R. S. David June 1964 15 February 1968 [30][31]
Sardarilal Mathradas Nanda 16 February 1968 1 March 1968 Later Chief of the Naval Staff. [30]
Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command (FOC-in-C WNC)
Vice Admiral Sardarilal Mathradas Nanda 1 March 1968 28 February 1970 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff [32][33]
Nilakanta Krishnan 28 February 1970 12 February 1971 [34]
Sourendra Nath Kohli 12 February 1971 27 February 1973 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff [35]
Jal Cursetji 27 February 1973 28 February 1976 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff [36][37]
Ronald Lynsdale Pereira 28 February 1976 5 April 1977 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff [38][39]
Rustom K. S. Ghandhi April 1977 3 March 1979 [40]
V. E. C. Barboza 3 March 1979 March 1981 [41]
Manohar Prahlad Awati March 1981 30 March 1983 [42][43][44]
Radhakrishna Hariram Tahiliani 31 March 1983 30 April 1984 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff [45]
Subimal Mookerjee 30 April 1984 28 February 1986 [46][47]
Sukhmal Jain 28 February 1986 31 December 1990 [48][49]
H. Johnson 1 January 1991 31 August 1992 [50]
KASZ Raju 31 August 1992 31 December 1994 [51]
Vishnu Bhagwat 31 December 1994 30 September 1996 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff. [52][53]
Kailash K. Kohli 20 October 1996 31 March 1998 [49]
Madhvendra Singh 1 April 1998 31 March 2001 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff, and as Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee [54][55]
Vinod Pasricha 1 April 2001 31 December 2002 [56]
Arun Prakash 1 January 2003 30 September 2003 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff, and as Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee [57][58]
Madanjit Singh 1 October 2003 28 February 2006 [59][60]
Sangram Singh Byce 1 March 2006 31 July 2007 [61][59]
Jagjit Singh Bedi 1 August 2007 30 April 2009 [62][63]
Sanjeev Bhasin 1 May 2009 30 April 2012 [64]
Devendra Kumar Joshi 1 May 2012 31 August 2012 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff. Current Lieutenant Governor of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. [65]
Shekhar Sinha 1 September 2012 31 May 2014 Retired from the Navy after being superseded. [66]
Anil Kumar Chopra 1 June 2014 31 March 2015 [67]
Surinder Pal Singh Cheema 1 April 2015 31 January 2016 Also headed the Strategic Forces Command and the Southern Naval Command, apart from serving as the Chief of Integrated Defence Staff. [68][69]
Sunil Lanba 1 February 2016 31 May 2016 Later served as Chief of Naval Staff, and as Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee [70]
Girish Luthra 1 June 2016 31 January 2019 [71][72]
Ajit Kumar P 1 February 2019 28 February 2021 [73]
R. Hari Kumar 28 February 2021 29 November 2021 Current Chief of Naval Staff [74]
Ajendra Bahadur Singh 30 November 2021 28 February 2023 [75]
Dinesh K Tripathi 1 March 2023 3 January 2023 Current Vice Chief of the Naval Staff. [76]
Sanjay Jasjit Singh 3 January 2024 Incumbent [77]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Organisation of Western Command". Indian Navy. Archived from the original on 10 February 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
  2. 1 2 "Reorganisation of Naval Commands" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 2 March 1968. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  3. ↑ Luthra, Gulshan (December 2018). "50 Glorious Years of Western Naval Command". India Strategic. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
  4. 1 2 "VICE ADMIRAL SANJAY J SINGH TAKES OVER AS FLAG OFFICER COMMANDING-IN-CHIEF, WESTERN NAVAL COMMAND". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  5. ↑ Bhatia (1977), p. 28: "Consequent on the partition of the country on 15 August 1947, two thirds of the undivided fleet and associated assets came to India."
  6. ↑ "Change of Titles in Indian Navy" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 27 April 1952. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  7. 1 2 "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Navy Branch)". The Gazette of India. 16 August 1958. p. 188.
  8. ↑ Hiranandani, G M (2000). Transition to triumph : history of the Indian Navy, 1965-1975. Lancer Publishers. p. 615. ISBN 978-1897829721.
  9. ↑ "Delay mars main air defence weapon deployment on INS Kolkata". 13 August 2014.
  10. ↑ "Organisation | Indian Navy". indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
  11. ↑ "https://twitter.com/IN_WNC/status/1642120940833366017". Twitter. Retrieved 1 April 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  12. ↑ "https://twitter.com/IN_WesternFleet/status/1722942078886269039?s=20". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 12 November 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  13. ↑ "https://twitter.com/IN_HQMNA/status/1722987698351178144". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 12 November 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  14. ↑ "REAR ADMIRAL VIKRAM MENON TAKES OVER AS FOGA". www.pib.gov.in. Retrieved 25 August 2022.
  15. ↑ "RAdm Anil Jaggi assumed charge as FOGNA". indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  16. ↑ "https://twitter.com/IN_KTKNA/status/1645379695943503875". Twitter. Retrieved 10 April 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  17. ↑ "Indian Navy conducts 2nd edition of Mumbai Heritage Run with over 6500 participants". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
  18. ↑ "REAR ADMIRAL KP ARVINDAN TAKES OVER AS ADMIRAL SUPERINTENDENT OF NAVAL DOCKYARD (MUMBAI)". pib.gov.in.
  19. ↑ "https://twitter.com/IN_WNC/status/1703230768796037545". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 19 September 2023. {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  20. ↑ "Organisation of Western Naval Command, Mumbai | Indian Navy". indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  21. ↑ "INS Sardar Patel: Indian Navy's new base commissioned in Gujarat - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  22. ↑ "Press Note" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 30 December 1950. Retrieved 16 February 2020.
  23. ↑ "Senior Naval Officers' Conference Opens - Admiral Pizey's Address" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 3 December 1952. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  24. ↑ "Press Note" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 5 December 1953. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  25. ↑ "Change in Bombay Naval Command" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 15 November 1954. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  26. ↑ "Commodore Soman to Take Over Bombay Command" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 15 October 1956. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  27. ↑ "New Deputy Chief of Naval Staff" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 14 May 1962. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  28. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Navy Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 26 November 1960. p. 312.
  29. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Navy Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 15 August 1964. p. 330.
  30. 1 2 "Commodore Krishnan New Navy Vice Chief" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 11 December 1967. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  31. ↑ "S. M. Nanda". Times of India Group. 16 February 1968. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  32. ↑ Services chiefs of India. Northern Book Centre. 2007. p. 111. ISBN 9788172111625.
  33. ↑ "Upgradations in Defence Services Appointments" (PDF). Press Information Bureau - Archive. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
  34. ↑ "Admiral Chatterji Hands Over Charge to Admiral Nanda" (PDF). Press Information Bureau - Archive. 28 February 1970. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  35. ↑ "Admiral Sourendra Nath Kohli, Padma Bhushan, PVSMAdmiral Sourendra Nath Kohli, Padma Bhushan, PVSM". Indian Navy Information Resource and Facilitation Centre. Indian Navy. Archived from the original on 10 April 2009.
  36. ↑ "Admiral Cursetji To Head Western Naval Command" (PDF). Press Information Bureau - Archive. 14 February 1973. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  37. ↑ "New Senior Naval Appointments" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 28 February 1976. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  38. ↑ "New Senior Naval Appointments" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 28 February 1976. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  39. ↑ "Admiral Pereira Takes Over as Vice Chief of Naval Staff" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 5 April 1977. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  40. ↑ "Senior Naval Officers' Conference" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 5 November 1978. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  41. ↑ "Defence Snippets" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 9 April 1979. Retrieved 5 February 2020.
  42. ↑ "Vice Admiral M P Awati, distinguished and genial senior officer in the Indian Navy – obituary". The Telegraph. 11 January 2019.
  43. ↑ T. N. Raghunatha (5 November 2018). "Iconic Vice Admiral Awati (Retd) passes away in Satara". The Pioneer.
  44. ↑ "Admiral Awati Inaugurates Naval Diving Squadron" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 14 March 1981. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  45. ↑ "Admiral Tahiliani Takes Over Western Naval Command" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 31 March 1983. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  46. ↑ "Vice Admiral Mookerjee Takes Over Western Naval Command" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 29 April 1984. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  47. ↑ "Subimal Mookerjee Retires From Navy" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 1 March 1986. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  48. ↑ "Vice Admiral Jain Takes Over Western Naval Command" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 28 February 1986. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  49. 1 2 "Indian Navy rocked by major succession scandal". Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  50. ↑ "New Vice Chief, Flag Officer Commanders-in-Chief and Deputy Chief For Indian Navy" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 28 December 1990. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  51. ↑ "Vice Admiral KASZ Raju" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 31 August 1992. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  52. ↑ "Vice Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat Takes Over as FOC-in-C (West)" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 31 December 1994. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
  53. ↑ "Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat Takes Over as Chief of Indian Navy" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 28 December 1990. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  54. ↑ Cardozo, Major General Ian (1 December 2006). The Sinking of INS Khukri: Survivor's Stories. Roli Books Private Limited. ISBN 9789351940999.
  55. ↑ "Latest Releases". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  56. ↑ "Naval Appointments" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 1 March 2001. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  57. ↑ "Vice Admiral Arun Prakash,PVSM,AVSM,VrC,VSM,ADC will be the new Naval Chief". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  58. ↑ "Vice Admiral Arun Prakash takes over as C-in-C of WNC". Zee News. 31 December 2002. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  59. 1 2 "Admiral Byce named flag officer CIC of Western Naval Command". Zee News. 28 February 2006. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  60. ↑ "New Naval appointments". The Hindu. 22 September 2003. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  61. ↑ "New Flag Appointments in the Navy". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  62. ↑ "New Deputy Chief for the Navy". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  63. ↑ "Bedi takes charge of Western Naval Command". www.oneindia.com. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  64. ↑ "Sanjeev Bhasin to head the Western Naval Command | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". dna. 29 April 2009. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  65. ↑ "D K Joshi is new chief of Western Naval Command - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  66. ↑ "Vice Admiral Shekhar Sinha PVSM AVSM NM& BAR, ADC Appointed as Commander in Chief Western Naval Command to Take Over from Vice Admiral DK Joshi". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  67. ↑ "Vice Admiral Anil Chopra takes over as Western Naval Commander - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  68. ↑ "VAdm SPS Cheema takes over as FOC-in-C(West) | Indian Navy". indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  69. ↑ "Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba takes over from Vice Admiral SPS Cheema as the Commander-in-Chief of Southern Naval Command". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  70. ↑ "Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba Takes Over Western Naval Command". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  71. ↑ "Vice Admiral Girish Luthra takes over Western Naval Command | Indian Navy". www.indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  72. ↑ "Vice Admiral Girish Luthra Takes Over Western Naval Command". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 24 October 2017.
  73. ↑ @indiannavy (31 January 2019). "VAdm P Ajit Kumar PVSM, AVSM, VSM takes over as Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, the premier Command of #IndianNavy in an impressive ceremony at Mumbai. Returns where he has commanded two frontline Destroyers + stealth frigate & was Chief Staff Offr (Ops)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  74. ↑ "Vice Admiral R Hari Kumar takes charge as Western Naval Command Chief". Times Of India. 28 February 2021.
  75. ↑ "ENC bids Farewell to Vice Admiral Ajendra Bahadur Singh". United News of India. 28 November 2021.
  76. ↑ "Vice Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi Takes Over as Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command". indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  77. ↑ "VICE ADMIRAL SANJAY J SINGH TAKES OVER AS FLAG OFFICER COMMANDING-IN-CHIEF, WESTERN NAVAL COMMAND". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 3 January 2024.
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