Vice Admiral Admiral Karambir Singh appointed as next Navy Chief

New Delhi, Mar 23 Vice Admiral Karambir Singh was delegated as the following head of maritime staff, succeeding Admiral Sunil Lanba who retires on May 30, the defence Ministry said Saturday.

The government made the selection following a merit-based approach and did not go with the custom of naming the senior most eligible officer to the post, official sources said.

President of the Andaman and Nicobar Command Vice Admiral Vimal Verma, who is higher ranking than Singh, was among the contenders for the top post, they said.

At present, Vice Admiral Singh is filling in as the Flag Officer Commanding in Chief (FOC-in-C) of the Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam, and he will take charge as Navy Chief on May 31, the defence ministry said.

Besides taking over as FOC-in-C Eastern Naval Command in October 2017, he also served as Deputy Chief as well as Vice Chief of Naval Staff.

Besides Verma, different contenders for the Navy Chief's post included Vice Chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral G Ashok Kumar, FOC-in-C of Western Naval Command Vice Admiral Ajit Kumar and FOC-in-C of Southern Naval Command Vice Admiral Anil Kumar Chawla, the sources said.

While appointing the Army Chief in 2016, the government did not follow the long-held convention of going by the status.

Born on November 3, 1959, Singh was charged into the Indian Navy on July 1, 1980. He earned his wings as a helicopter pilot in 1982 and has flown broadly on Chetak and Kamov helicopters.

He is perhaps the first helicopter pilot to helm the Navy, said a Navy official.

Singh, who an alum of Defence Services Staff College, Wellington and College of Naval Warfare, Mumbai, hails from Jalandhar and a beneficiary of Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM) and the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM).

In his career spannin over 37 years, the Admiral has commanded four ships - Indian Coast Guard ship Chandbibi, missile corvette INS Vijaydurg, guided rocket destroyers INS Rana and INS Delhi.

Singh has also served in as the Fleet Operations Officer of the Western Fleet.

His other vital assignments incorporate Chief of Staff of the Tri-Services Unified Command at Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Flag Officer Commanding Maharashtra and Gujarat Naval Area (FOMAG).

In the rank of Vice Admiral, he was also the Director General of Project Seabird, taking care of foundation improvement of the Navy's modern base at Karwar.

The Navy Chief retires after a three-year tenure or attaining 62 years of age, whichever is earlier.