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Vice Admiral Ajay Kochhar on Friday assumed charge as the 48th Vice Chief of the Indian Navy, bringing with him nearly four decades of operational and command experience, including a key role in the Navy’s high-tempo deployments during Operation Sindoor.
Before taking over as the Navy’s second-in-command, Vice Admiral Kochhar served as Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC), India’s only integrated tri-services theatre command tasked with safeguarding strategically vital maritime approaches in the Indian Ocean Region.
Earlier, as Chief of Staff of the Western Naval Command, he played a central role in overseeing the Navy’s forward deployment of frontline assets during Operation Sindoor amid heightened security challenges in the western maritime theatre.
He succeeds Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan, who has been appointed Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Naval Command.
Commissioned into the Indian Navy on July 1, 1988, after graduating from the National
Defence Academy, Pune, Vice Admiral Kochhar is a specialist in gunnery and missile systems. Over a naval career spanning more than 37 years, he has held a range of operational, command and policy appointments.
The Flag Officer has commanded several frontline warships, including INS Nashak, INS Vibhuti and INS Kirpan. He was also the commissioning commanding officer of the stealth frigate INS Trikand and later commanded the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
During his tenure aboard Vikramaditya, the carrier completed the integration and operationalisation of its air wing, a significant milestone in the Navy’s carrier aviation capability.
Vice Admiral Kochhar is a graduate of the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, the Naval War College, Goa, and the Royal College of Defence Studies in the United Kingdom.
At Naval Headquarters, he served in several important staff assignments, including as Assistant Controller, Carrier Projects, and Assistant Controller, Warship Production and Acquisition, after being promoted to Flag rank in 2018.
He later commanded the Western Fleet in 2021 before taking over as Commandant of the National Defence Academy, where he focused on improving training standards and infrastructure development.
The officer assumed charge as Chief of Staff of the Western Naval Command on May 25, 2024, at a time of increased operational activity in the Arabian Sea and western seaboard. According to the Navy, he led the command’s response to both conventional and non-conventional maritime threats, including operational deployments linked to Operation Sindoor.
The Navy said that during his tenure at the Andaman and Nicobar Command, he also contributed significantly towards strengthening jointness and operational integration among the Army, Navy and Air Force.
Team BharatShakti
