- Vice Admiral Dinesh Tripathi takes charge as Chief of Personnel
- Vice Admiral Ravneet Singh assumes charge as Deputy Chief of Naval Staff
- Lieutenant General Manoj Pande is the new GOC in Chief of Eastern Command
- Vice Admiral Sreekumar Nair takes over as Director-General Naval Projects, Visakhapatnam
- Lieutenant General Pradeep Chandran Nair takes over as Director General Assam Rifles
- Lieutenant General Ajai Singh takes over as 16th Commander-in-Chief, Andaman & Nicobar Command
- Vice Admiral Sandeep Naithani assumes charge as the Chief of Materiel
New Delhi: Vice Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, AVSM, NM, assumed charge as Chief of Personnel today. He is an alumnus of National Defence Academy Khadakwasla and was commissioned in the Navy on July 1, 1985. The Flag Officer is a specialist in Communication and Electronic Warfare and has served on frontline warships of the Navy as Signal Communication Officer and Electronic Warfare Officer and later as the Executive Officer and Principal Warfare Officer of Guided Destroyer INS Mumbai.
A graduate of Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, where he was awarded the Thimmaiya Medal, Vice Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi has attended Naval Higher Command Course and Naval Command College at the US Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island in 2007-08, where he won the prestigious Robert Bateman International Prize. He has commanded INS Vinash, INS Kirch and INS Trishul and has held various important operational and staff appointments which include Fleet Operations Officer of the Western Fleet at Mumbai, Director of Naval Operations, Principle Director Network Centric Operations, Principal Director Naval Plans, and Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Policy and Plans) at Naval Headquarters.
In a related development, Vice Admiral Ravneet Singh, AVSM, NM assumed charge as Deputy Chief of Naval Staff on 01 Jun 2021. Vice Admiral Ravneet Singh was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 01 Jul 1983 and specialized in Aviation. The Flag Officer is a Qualified Flying Instructor with Master Green instrument rating. He has flown HT-2, Kiran HJT 16, TS 11 Iskra, Hunter, Harrier Gr 3, Jet Provost, Chetak, Gazelle, Hawk and Mig 29 KUB aircraft during his illustrious career.
The Admiral has held various challenging Staff, Command and Diplomatic assignments during his distinguished naval career and has had wide ranging experience onboard diverse platforms. He has commanded various frontline ships and Naval Air Squadrons including INS Himgiri, INS Ranvijay, INS Ranvir, INAS 551B, INAS 300 as well as the premier Air Base INS Hansa. Additionally he was also appointed Indian Defence Advisor (Kenya, Tanzania and Seychelles) from 2005 to 2008. On promotion to Flag rank, he has held key assignments of Assistant Controller Carrier Project & Assistant Controller Warship Production and Acquisition at IHQ MoD(N), Flag Officer Goa Area/ Flag Officer Naval Aviation at Goa and Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet at Mumbai. In the rank of Vice Admiral, the Flag Officer has tenanted the appointments of Chief of Staff at Headquarters Western Naval Command, Mumbai, Director General Project Seabird and Chief of Personnel at IHQ MoD (N).
In another related development, Vice Admiral Sreekumar Nair, AVSM, NM, took over as the Director-General Naval Projects (DGNP), Visakhapatnam from Vice Admiral Kiran Deshmukh, AVSM, VSM. Vice Admiral Nair has earlier served as Admiral Superintendent, Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam and Assistant Chief of Materiel (Information Technology and Systems), at Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence (Navy).
The Flag officer was commissioned as an Electrical Officer into the Indian Navy on 17 Aug 1987 and is an alumnus of erstwhile Regional Engineering College (now NIT), Tiruchrapalli and IIT Delhi. The Flag Officer has held various important appointments in the Indian Navy including Operational, Staff and Dockyard. He has served onboard Indian Naval Ships Ranvir, Rana, Delhi and Mumbai. He has commanded the premier training establishment INS Valsura at Jamnagar. His other major ashore appointments include Chief Staff Officer (Technical), Headquarters Southern Naval Command, Principal Director Ship Production, Principal Director Weapon Equipment and Director of Personnel at Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence (Navy), New Delhi.
Meanwhile Lieutenant General Manoj Pande, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Vishisht Seva Medal, took over the reins of Eastern Command as its General Officer Commanding-in-Chief today. Prior to this, he was Commander-in-Chief Andaman & Nicobar Command, the only Tri- services Operational Command in India fromJune 1, 2020 to May 31, 2021.
The General was commissioned in the Bombay Sappers in December 1982. In his distinguished service career, he has held several prestigious command and staff assignments in Conventional as well as Counter Insurgency Operations in all types of terrain. He commanded an Engineer Regiment along Line of Control during Operation PARAKRAM in J&K, an Engineer Brigade in Western Sector, Infantry Brigade along Line of Control in J&K, Mountain Division in High Altitude Area of Western Ladakh & a Corps in North East. The General is a graduate of Staff College Camberley(UK) and has varied experience in staff appointments which include the Military Secretary & Military Operations Branches at Army Headquarters, Operations Branch in a Brigade Headquarters in the North East and Headquarters Eastern Command at Kolkata.
Today also Lieutenant General Pradeep Chandran Nair, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM), Yudh Seva Medal (YSM) took over as the 21st Director General of the Assam Rifles (popularly known as Sentinels of the North-East) on 1st June 2021. He has rich experience of Assam Rifles and the North East, having earlier been an Inspector General and a Company Commander in Assam Rifles, besides having commanded Assam Rifles battalions as a Brigade Commander.
The General Officer was commissioned into the Sikh Regiment in 1985. He is an alumnus of Sainik School Satara, National Defence Academy, Defence Services Staff College, College of Defence Management and the prestigious Indian Institute of Public Administration. He has very vast combat experience having commanded his battalion (18 Sikh) in Siachen Glacier and Assam. In addition, in the North East, he has been a Company Commander in Manipur and Sikkim, Battalion Commander in Assam, Brigade Commander in Manipur and in the recent past has also been an Inspector General of Assam Rifles in Nagaland. He has been an instructor in Infantry School, Mhow, Indian Military Training Team, Bhutan and a Directing Staff at the prominent Defence Services Staff College. He has served in the Army Headquarters as a Colonel, Major General and Lieutenant General. He has also served as Brigadier General Staff in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa Area and in the Defence Intelligence Agency.
In his last assignment at the Army Headquarters, he was the Director General Recruiting, responsible for recruiting officers and jawans in the Indian Army. He has been decorated with the AtiVishishtSeva Medal during his command as the Inspector General Assam Rifles (North) in Nagaland, YudhSeva Medal during his command of a Brigade in Manipur and the Chief of Army Staff Commendation Card on three occasions.
Lieutenant General Ajai Singh today assumed charge as the 16th Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman & Nicobar Command (CINCAN). The Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) is the only tri-service theatre command of the Armed Forces, based at Port Blair.A fifth generation Army as well as Cavalry/Armoured Corps officer, with family service of over 162 years since September 13, 1858, Lt Gen Ajai Singh is an alumnus of The Lawrence School, Sanawar and NDA & IMA. He was commissioned in December 1983 into 81 Armoured Regiment, a Regiment raised by his late father.
The General officer has had the privilege of tenanting various appointments across all six of the Army’s geographical Commands as well as at the Army Training Command. He was an Instructor of Tank Gunnery & Tactics at the Armoured Corps Centre & School and served at important assignments at the Army HQ, HQ Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) as well as with the United Nations as a Military Observer at Angola.
Lt Gen Ajai Singh also undertook volunteer tenures for counter-insurgency operations in the Kashmir Valley and in the North East, where he was posted at a Mountain Division on the border. As a Major with over 16 years of service, the General officer had volunteered for a tenure on the Siachen Glacier and was posted to a Battalion of the Maratha Light Infantry, with whom he commanded a Rifle Company in Operations VIJAY (Kargil) and MEGHDOOT (Siachen Glacier) and received the Army Chief’s Commendation for gallantry.
The General officer also held sensitive posts at the Army HQ as the Additional DG at the Military Operations Directorate and was DG, Financial Planning and DG, Military Training. Other than a Rifle Company in active operations, Lt Gen Ajai Singh commanded an Armoured Regiment, Brigade & Division and a Corps deployed on the border in Punjab and Rajasthan.He has attended numerous prestigious military courses as well as mountaineering courses at the High-Altitude Warfare School and tank gunnery &technology courses. Lt Gen Ajai Singh was also selected to attend a UN Senior Mission Leader Course at Indonesia as well as the Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) Course at the UK.
Lt Gen Ajai Singh was an active part of flood relief efforts in Uttarakhand in 2013, Uttar Pradesh&Bihar in 2017 and Kerala in 2018 as well as the of Government’s Covid amelioration efforts.
Vice Admiral Sandeep Naithani, AVSM, VSM, today assumed charge as the Chief of Materiel, of the Indian Navy.
The Admiral has held various challenging appointments during his illustrious naval career spanning over three and a half decades. The officer has served on board the Aircraft Carrier Viraat in various capacities. He has tenanted important appointments in Naval Dockyards at Mumbai and Visakhapatnam and in the Staff, Personnel and Materiel Branches of Naval Headquarters. The Admiral has also commanded the premier electrical training establishment of the Navy, INS Valsura.
As a Flag Officer, the Admiral has served as the Assistant Chief of Materiel (Modernisation) in Naval Headquarters, Chief Staff Officer (Technical), HQ WNC, Admiral Superintendent of Naval Dockyard Mumbai, Director General Naval Project at Mumbai, Programme Director, HQ ATVP, and as Controller of Warship Production and Acquisition in Naval Headquarters.
In recognition of his distinguished services, the Admiral has been awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and Vishisht Seva Model.
As a Principal Staff Officer and the Senior most Technical Officer in the Indian Navy, the Admiral would be in charge of all aspects related to maintenance management and life-cycle product support of all Engineering, Electrical, Electronics, Weapons, Sensors and IT related equipment and systems for ships and submarines, issues related to indigenisation of naval equipment and creation of major marine and technical infrastructure.
– global bihari bureau
