Press Information Bureau (Defence Wing) Government of India
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PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU (DEFENCE WING) GOVERNMENT OF INDIA B NALL N: r. Yet 'another year of trainin. and toil, planninr, and progress marked the development of free India's Navy. The highlight of the year was the presentation of the President' s Colour to the Indian Navy - tho first of the three Services to receive it - in Nay iat. The p resenationt was done by the President, Dr.hajondra Prasad, in person as the Supremo Commander of our y publicS Armed Forces. The Colour has now taken the place of the King' s Colour which was laid up on India becoming, a hepublic in 1950. "I am confidant" said the President after presenting countryS defence will grow the Colour Uthat this arm of our from strengtil to strcngteL and add fresh laurels to itself in its muture career ........." Later, in a Navy Day mossape, the President hoped that this growing Service would derive inspiration from the ountry s gioriouc east and would be an invincible shield of our democratic hapublic". During the last four years, while buildin up the Service 3 -A Uhe emphasis has been on proper sea and shore training for Naval personnel. The last year was mostly devoted to sea training and consolidation of the Service. Combined exercises with the Royal Navy, the Dominion Navies nd the Royal Air Force and the Indian Air Force were carried out in increasing measure so as to heir our ships' end personnel to improve their all round operational efficiency. The various cruises carried out ,to our iaeighbouring corntries in the Persian Gulf, Australia, New Zealand, East Africa and Nadagascar also provided opportreities to impart practical sea training. The A The shore estahlishmrnts, on t-o, other hand, were bUsy training officers and men and in the meanwhile also trying to widen their scope. This was done with a view to be ultimately in a position to provide the entire naval braining in India itself instead of continuing the present practice of sending our officers and iaen to U.K. for advanced training. Thus the main ask of the training authorities was directed towards achieving, self-sufficiency and self-reliance in this sphere as soon as possible. A.notablo development at INS VENDURUTHI, the naval base at Cochin, i,s the ground work done to form a Fleet Requirement Unit for. the Naval Aviation Wing and building up of a Naval Air Station. The first batch of aircraft for this iing is expected to reach Inda from U.K. in the niddle of this year. Ever since the decision was first taken in 19487 that the Indian Na should 10 h ave its own aviation branch on the lines of naval aviation in the Royal Navy, a lot of work had to be done both at Naval Headquarte's and at Cochin, in plannine and progressing this new venture • It involved selecting and training the personnel required both for air and ground duties and working out the requirements of aircraft and equipment. It was decided that, as a beginning, the airfield at Cochin would be taken over and commissioned as a Naval Air Station and subsequently a Flet Requirement Unit formed. This unit will consist of a number of aircraft which wii work with the ShipS and training schools of the Indian i'Jag and whose function 11 be to provide targets for anti-aircraft gtumery, radio and radar co-operation, shadowing aNd course roportinr exercises and man other facilities necessary for the efficient training of a modern Navr. ..The aviation - Q - Tho aviation wina will shortly have 13 officers and 98 ratings being trained or attached to h.IJ. units in the United in'do;i and 12 officers and 4 ratings in India. That - the Indian officers could hold their own as against their counterparts in the other Navy's aviation wing was amply proved reert1y by three of the Indian Navy's future pilots who ' did a record flight from U.K. to i{alta, a distance of over 1000 miles which they flew in about three hours. at an average speed of over 400 miles an hour. With the modest beginning of d shore-based unit, it is hoped in due course to build up an efficient organisation with its own training schools, culminatiiig in the acquisition of an 4 aircraft carrier with its own Air Group manned by Indian Naval - officers fully trained in all the requireTicnts of an operationalNaval air unit. In the sphere of Naval C0111L1r1dS; the year witnessed some changes of far-reaching iiiportancc. Captain A.Chakravèrti and Captain 13.8. Sorcan were anpo.intod to two of the key naval posts - Captain Super intende nt of IN.iJockya.rd and Nval Officer in-charge, Vizagapatam respectively - hithertheld by British officerso tlndianisation' of the naval posts has been an the increase, on the whole. 'the posts of Commaiiding and Executive officers of all the ships of the Fleet have -4- gone to Indian officers. One more important post at Naval headquarters, that of the Naval Assistant to Chief of Staff, is now being given to an Indian Officer. Notable among other changes 'ii. commands have been the taking over by Vice-Admiral C.T.N.Pizey from Admiral Sir Edward Parry as the Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Navy and that of Rear-Admiral N.V.Dickinson from Rear-Admiral G.arnard as the Rear-Admiral Commanding the Indian Naval Lquadron. During the tenure of office of Admiral Parry, the Navy as a whole and the squadron under the command of Rear-Admiral iarnard witnessed substantial progress. ...The Iidian -4- The Indian Navy will soon bid good-bye to its present Deputy Comnder-iniief and Chief of 3taff, Commodore H.Drew, when he relinquishes the appointment which ho has been holding for over three ars now, Nost of th re-organjsatjon - both at Naval Nca dquarters and in various Naval COImandS - of far- reaching importance tookplace after Commodore Drew took up hi post. Commodore Drovt has contributed considerably to the, progress of the Navy. S1stantja1 progress is expected to be achieved this year in the sphere of Naval scientific research. Plans and programmes are alrnnj: Lii:' -Ar - under thc S orvision of tile Scientific Advi of the iavy to carry out researcn work in Naval matuers. The oxpansion the I.LJ.Jiockyard at bomba.y, primarily - with a View to ado quately meeting the present demands of the Fleet has been engaging the attention of the authorities for a long whila nOW. The plans for expansion which have hitherto been slowed down crwinE to various reasons including financial stringency are expected to be pursued with increased vigour in the cOming year in the intorots of the efficient working of the Sqajon. It was an honor the Navy to receive the Prime Minister, Nr,Jawaharlal Nehru on board the 1 11Z iWPUT, the leader of the Destroyer Flotilla, while he took passage from Jainnagar to Kandlla recently. This was the first tine that tiio Prime Ninister took passage on the Destroyer and flOtwithstanjg the very short duration of hs stay on board the ostroybr, to the persoe1 of the Flotilla, it was a memorable visit. 1000/16,1.52 .