List of Indian Armed Forces
List of Indian Armed Forces: Military forces play a crucial role in securing land and maritime borders, and airspace, along with maintaining peace in a country. The military forces of India are known as the Indian Armed Forces. These are divided into three – the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force.
The President of India is the supreme commandant of the Indian Armed Forces while the responsibility of the National Defence in India rests with the Cabinet, discharged through the Ministry of Defence (MOD).
Let us look at the three divisions of the Indian Armed Forces.
After Indian Independence from British colonialism, the Indian Army was formed. It is headquartered in the National Capital. The military unit functions under the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) – responsible for the overall command, control and administration.
Indian Army is divided into six operational commands and one training command. Each of these commands is headed by the Lieutenant-General, having equal status to the Vice-Chief of Army Staff (VCOAS).
The Indian Army is among the largest standing armies and the largest standing volunteer army in the world with 1,237,000 active troops and 800,000 reserve troops. At present, General Manoj Mukund Naravane heads the Indian Army.
The foundation of the modern Indian Navy was laid in the seventeenth century by the East India Company which snowballed into the Royal Indian Navy in 1934. The Indian Navy is headquartered in New Delhi and functions under the Chief of Naval Staff (CNS).
Indian Navy is deployed under three area commands, each headed by a flag officer. The Western Naval Command is headquartered in Bombay on the Arabian Sea, the Southern Naval Command in Kochi (Cochin on the Arabian Sea; and the Eastern Naval Command in Vishakhapatnam on the Bay of Bengal.
The Indian Navy is one of the world’s largest naval forces with 58,350 men and women and is looking forward to developing into a blue water navy. At present, Admiral R. Hari Kumar heads the Indian Navy.
The Indian Air Force was established on 8 October 1932 during British colonialism, and the prefix Royal was added in 1945 in recognition of its services during World War 2. After Indian Independence, the prefix Royal was dropped in 1950.
Indian Air Force has since then undergone massive changes including the induction of women for short service commissions. It has snowballed from a tactical force to one with transoceanic reach. Indian Air Force is currently headed by Chief of the Air Staff Vivek Ram Chaudhari.
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