The Director General of the Indian Coast Guard (DG ICG) is the head of the

Indian Coast Guard The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) is a maritime law enforcement and search and rescue agency of India with jurisdiction over its territorial waters including its contiguous zone and Exclusive economic zone of India, exclusive economic zone. It was st ...

. The DG ICG has their office in the Coast Guard Headquarters (CGHQ) in

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

. Appointed by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

, the DG ICG reports to the

Minister of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

. The Director General is assisted by four Deputy Directors General, each holding the rank of inspector-general, and other senior officers heading various staff divisions. The Additional Director General of the ICG serves as the second-in-command to the Director General. The post of Director General of the Indian Coast Guard is held by a

three-star rank Military star ranking is military terminology, used in mainly English speaking countries, to describe general and flag officers. Within NATO's armed forces, the stars are equal to OF-6–10. Star ranking One-star A one-star rank is usual ...

holder as a position and is not a rank in itself. It is equivalent to

Vice Admiral Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral. Australia In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...

of the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy (IN) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Navy, maritime and Amphibious warfare, amphibious branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of the Naval Staff (India), Chief ...

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

of the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

, Air Marshal of the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 Octob ...

, and the

Director General A director general, general director or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''general directors'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'') is a senior executive officer, often the chief executive officer ...

Central Armed Police Forces The Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) consist of seven armed police organizations under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Government of India, tasked with maintaining internal security, law and order, counterinsurgency, and protecting borde ...

State Police Forces State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

. The rank of Additional Director General of the Indian Coast Guard is equivalent to that of a Lieutenant General of the Indian Army. Paramesh Sivamani is the current Director General of the

who assumed the office after Rakesh Pal died on 18th August 2024 following a cardiac arrest.

History

The

came into being on 19 August 1978. The new service was to function under the overall command and control of a Director general.

V. A. Kamath, deputed from the Indian Navy, served as the first DG ICG. Appointed on 19 August 1978, he served in the capacity until 31 March 1980. Until 2016, appointees to the position of the Director General were Vice Admirals in the

who were deputed to the Coast Guard with the exceptions of Rameshwar Singh and P. Paleri - two naval officers who were permanently deputed to the Coast Guard service after serving in the Navy. In 2016,

Rajendra Singh Bisht Rajendra Singh, PTM, TM (born 28 June 1959) is a retired Indian Coast Guard officer who served as the 22nd Director General of the Indian Coast Guard, Director General of the Indian Coast Guard. He was the first Indian Coast Officer to serve a ...

became first Indian Coast Guard officer to serve as its Director General.

Additional responsibilities

Apart from heading the Coast Guard, the DGICG is also: * Chairman, National Maritime Search and Rescue Board (NMSARB) * Chairman, National Oil-spill Disaster Contingency Plan Committee (NOSDCP) * Chairman, Offshore Security Co-ordination Committee (OSCC), of which the

Flag Officer Defence Advisory Group The Flag Officer Defence Advisory Group (FODAG) and Advisor Offshore Security and Defence to the Government of India is the title of the flag officer who heads the Offshore Defence Advisory Group. The FODAG is a two-star officer holding the rank o ...

is a member. * Indian Governor to Regional Co-operation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against ships in Asia (ReCAAP)

Insignia

The badges of rank have a crossed sword and baton over three eight-pointed stars and the Ashoka emblem above, on a golden shoulder board. The Director General wears

gorget patches Gorget patches (collar tabs, collar patches) are an insignia in the form of paired patches of cloth or metal on the collar of a uniform (gorget), used in the military and civil service in some countries. Collar tabs sign the military rank (group ...

which are navy blue patches with three golden stars and oak leaves under the three golden stars. In addition to this, the double-breasted

reefer jacket A pea coat is an outer coat, generally of a navy-coloured heavy wool, originally worn by sailors of European and later American navies. Pea coats are characterized by short length, broad lapels, double-breasted fronts, often large wooden, metal ...

has three golden sleeve stripes consisting of a broad band with two narrower bands.

List of Directors General

- Died in office

Notes

Footnotes

References

Bibliography

* * * * {{citation, first1=Anup, last1=Singh, title=Blue Waters Ahoy!, The Indian Navy 2001-2010 , year=2018, isbn= 9789353025526, publisher=HarperCollins Publishers India

External links

Official website of Indian Coast Guard

Organisational structure of Indian Coast Guard
Indian Coast Guard Indian Navy Indian military appointments