Indian Defence system

Overview & Fundamental Concept

High-yield cadet preparation guide for the Indian Defence System under AISSEE Class VI General Knowledge (Syllabus Item 6). Covers Supreme Commander, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Army-Navy-Air Force rank equivalents, 17 operational commands, and defense academies.

• Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces: Under Article 53(2) of the Constitution of India, the supreme command of the Defence Forces of the Union is vested in the President of India.
• Ministry of Defence (MoD): The administrative and policy control is exercised by the Government of India through the Ministry of Defence headed by the Union Raksha Mantri (Defence Minister).
• Chief of Defence Staff (CDS): Created in December 2019 to provide single-point military advice to the government and integrate the three services.
  • 1st CDS: General Bipin Rawat (PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, YSM, SM, VSM • assumed office on 1 January 2020; tragically martyred in a helicopter crash in Coonoor on 8 December 2021).
  • 2nd & Current CDS: General Anil Chauhan (PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, SM, VSM • assumed office on 30 September 2022).
• The Three Military Arms & Their Observance Days:
  • Indian Army: Headed by the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) (Four-Star General). Motto: 'Seva Paramo Dharma' (Service Before Self). Celebrates Army Day on 15 January (commemorating Field Marshal K. M. Cariappa taking over as the first Indian Commander-in-Chief from General Sir Francis Roy Bucher in 1949).
  • Indian Navy: Headed by the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) (Four-Star Admiral). Motto: 'Sham No Varunah' (May the Lord of Oceans be auspicious unto us). Celebrates Navy Day on 4 December (commemorating the devastating attack on Karachi harbor during Operation Trident in the 1971 Indo-Pak War).
  • Indian Air Force: Headed by the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) (Four-Star Air Chief Marshal). Motto: 'Nabha Sparsham Deeptam' (Touch the Sky with Glory — taken from Chapter 11 of the Bhagavad Gita). Celebrates Air Force Day on 8 October (established on 8 October 1932 as the Royal Indian Air Force).

• In the All India Sainik Schools Entrance Examination, matching commissioned officer ranks across the three branches is a top-priority recurring question.
• Entry-Level Commissioned Rank:
  • Army: Lieutenant
  • Navy: Sub Lieutenant
  • Air Force: Flying Officer
• Middle Ranks:
  • Captain (Army) = Lieutenant (Navy) = Flight Lieutenant (Air Force).
  • Major (Army) = Lieutenant Commander (Navy) = Squadron Leader (Air Force).
  • Lieutenant Colonel (Army) = Commander (Navy) = Wing Commander (Air Force).
  • Colonel (Army) = Captain (Navy) = Group Captain (Air Force).
• Star & Flag Officer Ranks:
  • 1-Star: Brigadier (Army) = Commodore (Navy) = Air Commodore (Air Force).
  • 2-Star: Major General (Army) = Rear Admiral (Navy) = Air Vice Marshal (Air Force).
  • 3-Star: Lieutenant General (Army) = Vice Admiral (Navy) = Air Marshal (Air Force).
  • 4-Star: General (COAS) = Admiral (CNS) = Air Chief Marshal (CAS).
• 5-Star Honorary Ranks (Conferred in Wartime):
  • Army: Field Marshal — Only two officers have been elevated to this rank: Sam Manekshaw (January 1973 for the 1971 victory) and K. M. Cariappa (January 1986).
  • Air Force: Marshal of the Indian Air Force (MIAF) — Only one officer has been conferred this rank: Arjan Singh (January 2002 for leadership in the 1965 war).
  • Navy: Admiral of the Fleet — Never been conferred to date.

• The Indian Armed Forces operate through 17 Service Operational Commands and 2 Unified Tri-Service Commands.
• Indian Army — 7 Commands:
  1. Northern Command: Udhampur (Jammu & Kashmir)
  2. Western Command: Chandimandir (Panchkula, Haryana)
  3. Eastern Command: Fort William, Kolkata (West Bengal)
  4. Southern Command: Pune (Maharashtra)
  5. Central Command: Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh)
  6. South Western Command: Jaipur (Rajasthan)
  7. Army Training Command (ARTRAC): Shimla (Himachal Pradesh)
• Indian Navy — 3 Commands:
  1. Western Naval Command: Mumbai (Maharashtra)
  2. Eastern Naval Command: Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh)
  3. Southern Naval Command (Training): Kochi (Kerala)
• Indian Air Force — 7 Commands:
  1. Western Air Command: New Delhi
  2. Eastern Air Command: Shillong (Meghalaya)
  3. Central Air Command: Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh)
  4. Southern Air Command: Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala)
  5. South Western Air Command: Gandhinagar (Gujarat)
  6. Training Command: Bengaluru (Karnataka)
  7. Maintenance Command: Nagpur (Maharashtra)
• Unified Tri-Service Commands (2):
  • Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC): Headquartered at Port Blair; established in October 2001 as India's first integrated theater command protecting the Malacca Strait choke point.
  • Strategic Forces Command (SFC): Responsible for the management and administration of the country's tactical and strategic nuclear weapons stockpile.

• Sainik Schools System:
  • Conceived in 1961 by V. K. Krishna Menon (then Union Defence Minister) to rectify regional imbalance in officer cadre intake and prepare cadets mentally and physically for entry into the National Defence Academy (NDA).
  • First Sainik School: Sainik School Satara in Maharashtra, inaugurated on 23 June 1961.
  • Governed by the Sainik Schools Society (Ministry of Defence).
• Rashtriya Indian Military College (RIMC): Located in Dehradun (Uttarakhand). Established on 13 March 1922 by the Prince of Wales (King Edward VIII) to train young boys for Sandhurst / commissioned officer careers.
• National Defence Academy (NDA): Located at Khadakwasla near Pune (Maharashtra). The world's first tri-service military academy, where cadets of the Army, Navy, and Air Force train together before going to their respective pre-commissioning academies.
• Indian Military Academy (IMA): Located in Dehradun (Uttarakhand). Established in 1932 by Field Marshal Sir Philip Chetwode. Renowned for the timeless Chetwode Motto: 'The safety, honour and welfare of your country come first, always and every time...'.
• Officers Training Academy (OTA): Located in Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and Gaya (Bihar), training officers for Short Service Commission (SSC).
• Indian Naval Academy (INA): Located at Ezhimala (Kannur district, Kerala). Asia's largest naval academy, bounded by Mount Dilli and the Arabian Sea.
• Air Force Academy (AFA): Located at Dundigal near Hyderabad (Telangana), training pilots, navigators, and ground duty officers for the IAF.

• Aircraft Carriers of the Indian Navy:
  • INS Vikrant (IAC-1): India's first indigenously built aircraft carrier, designed by the Warship Design Bureau and constructed by Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL). Commissioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 2 September 2022. Motto: 'Jayema Sam Yudhi Spradhah' (I defeat those who fight against me).
  • INS Vikramaditya: Modified Kiev-class aircraft carrier acquired from Russia (commissioned in 2013). Flagship of the Indian Navy.
• Nuclear Submarines & Nuclear Triad:
  • INS Arihant: India's first indigenously designed nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine (SSBN). Commissioned in 2016, it officially completed India's Nuclear Triad (the capability to fire nuclear missiles from land, air, and sea).
• Combat Aircraft of the Indian Air Force:
  • HAL Tejas: India's indigenous single-engine Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
  • Dassault Rafale: Advanced 4.5-generation twin-engine multi-role fighter aircraft imported from France (operated by No. 17 Squadron 'Golden Arrows' in Ambala).
  • Sukhoi Su-30MKI: Twin-engine air superiority heavy fighter built under license by HAL.
• Supersonic Cruise Missile — BrahMos:
  • World's fastest supersonic cruise missile (speed: Mach 2.8 to 3.0). Joint venture between India (DRDO) and Russia (NPOM), named after two rivers: Brahmaputra (India) and Moskva (Russia).