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 ...

Sanjay Jasjit Singh,

PVSM Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM) (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: , ) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of India. It is the highest peacetime medal of the Indian Armed Forces, and is awarded for "dist ...

AVSM Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM, ) is a military award of India given to recognize "distinguished service of an exceptional order" to all ranks of the armed forces. The award is a peacetime equivalent of Uttam Yuddh Seva Medal, which is a Wartime ...

, NM is a serving flag officer in 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 ...

. He currently serves as the

Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command The Western Naval Command is one of the three command–level formations of the Indian Navy. It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. As the senior–most of the three formations, the command is responsible for the all naval forces in the A ...

. He previously served as the 37th Vice Chief of the Naval Staff and as the Deputy Chief of Integrated Defence Staff (Operations) (DCIDS Ops) at IDS HQ.

Early life and education

Singh was born in an

Armed Forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...

family and is a third-generation officer. His father,

Air Commodore Air commodore (Air Cdre or Air Cmde) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

Jasjit Singh,

, VrC, VM was an officer in 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 ...

. Jasjit Singh, as a

fighter pilot A fighter pilot or combat pilot is a Military aviation, military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, Air-to-ground weaponry, air-to-ground combat and sometimes Electronic-warfare aircraft, electronic warfare while in the cockpit of ...

in No. 3 Squadron IAF, was awarded the

Vir Chakra The Vir Chakra (pronunciation: ʋ iː ɾ a tʃ a kɾa, ) is an Indian wartime military bravery award presented for acts of gallantry on the battlefield, on land or in the air or at sea. It is third in precedence in wartime gallantry awards and ...

for gallantry in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. After retiring from the IAF, he headed the think tank

Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA), is an Indian think tank for advanced research in international relations, especially defence, strategic and security issues. It also provides training to civilian, military ...

(later Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses), from 1987 to 2001. In 2001, he founded the

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS). He served as the Director General of CAPS till his death in 2013. Singh graduated from the

National Defence Academy The National Defence Academy (NDA) is the joint defence service training institute of the Indian Armed Forces. Here, cadets of the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force train together before they go on to their respective service a ...

Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

where he was adjudged the best naval cadet. He was awarded the Binoculars as the Best Sea Cadet as well as the Sword of Honour as a

Midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest Military rank#Subordinate/student officer, rank in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Royal Cana ...

Naval career

Singh was commissioned into the

on 1 July 1986. After serving in the Andamans and in Mumbai in his early years, he specialised in Navigation and Direction, topping the Long ND course in 1992. He has served as the navigation officer on most classes of ships - the

Khukri-class corvette The ''Khukri''-class corvette , also known as Project 25, is a class of corvettes intended to replace the ageing Petya II-class corvettes of the Indian Navy. The first two were ordered in December 1983 and the remaining in 1985. Around 65% o ...

, the aircraft carrier and the

Godavari-class frigate The ''Godavari''-class frigates (formerly Type 16 or Project 16 frigates) were guided-missile frigates of the Indian Navy. The ''Godavari'' class was the first significant indigenous warship design and development initiative of the Indian Navy ...

. He was also the commissioning Navigation Officer of the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships that are all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very comple ...

of her class of guided missile destroyers, . In early 1999, Singh was appointed staff officer ND of the P-15 Training Team, at Mumbai. Later that year, he was selected to attend the Advanced Command and Staff Course at the

Joint Services Command and Staff College Joint Services Command and Staff College (JSCSC) is a British Armed Forces academic establishment that provides training and education to experienced officers of the Royal Navy, Army, Royal Air Force, Ministry of Defence Civil Service, and offic ...

(JSCSC),

Shrivenham Shrivenham is a village and civil parish in the Vale of White Horse, Oxfordshire, England, about south-west of Faringdon. The village is close to the county boundary with Wiltshire and about east-northeast of the centre of Swindon. The 201 ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He graduated from JSCSC in 2000, as the Best Overseas Student amongst 90 Army, Navy and Air Force officers from about 50 countries. After returning to India, he was appointed Joint Director of Personnel (JDOP) at naval headquarters. He was promoted to the rank of

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

in May 2001. After a three-year tenure as JDOP, he was appointed

Naval attaché A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations ...

at the Embassy of India at

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. After his return to India, Singh commanded the Nilgiri-class ASW and UAV-control

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

. He was promoted to the rank of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

on 1 July 2008. For his command of the ''Taragiri'', he was awarded the

Nao Sena Medal Nau Sena Medal (also spelt ''Nao Sena Medal'', lit. ''Navy Medal'') is a gallantry award for servicemen in the Indian Navy. History The Nau Sena Medal was instituted on 26 January 1960 by the Government of India, with the approval of the Presid ...

on 26 January 2009. In mid-2008, he took over as the Officer-in-charge, Local Work Up Team (West). As OIC-LWT(W), he was responsible for operational sea training of ships. After a short stint, he attended the naval higher command course at the College of Naval Warfare (CNW) in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

. During these stints, he was the lead drafter for the Indian Navy’s Maritime Doctrine, 2009, for which he was awarded Commendation by the Chief of the Naval Staff. After graduating from CNW, he took over as the Officer-in-charge of his alma mater, the Navigation Direction School. In mid-2010, Singh was appointed

commanding officer The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

of the Talwar-class

guided missile frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and maneuvera ...

. After about eighteen months in command, he was selected to attend National Defence College,

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 ...

as part of the 52nd course, in the rank of

Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (India), in India ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ' ...

. After completing the year-long course, he was appointed Principal Director Naval Operations at NHQ. Subsequently, he was appointed Principal Director Strategy, Concepts and Transformation (PDSCT), also at NHQ. As the PDSCT, he was the lead drafter of the Strategic Guidance to Transformation, 2015, and the Indian Maritime Security Strategy, 2015. RAdm Sanjay Jasjit Singh

Flag rank

On promotion to Flag rank, on 19 November 2015, Singh took over as the Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Communication Space and Network Centric Operation) (ACNS (CSNCO)). He was the second officer to hold the newly-created post. On 4 February 2018, he assumed the office of Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST) at

Kochi Kochi ( , ), List of renamed Indian cities and states#Kerala, formerly known as Cochin ( ), is a major port city along the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea. It is part of the Ernakulam district, district of Ernakulam in the ...

. As FOST, his charter included the conduct of the operational sea training of all ships of the

and 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 ...

. After a year-long tenure as FOST, Singh assumed the office of the

Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet (FOCWF) is the title of the Indian Navy Officer who commands the Western Fleet, headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The FOCWF is a two star admiral holding the rank of Rear Admiral. The appointment is consi ...

on 22 March 2019. For his command of the Western Fleet, Singh was awarded the

Ati Vishisht Seva Medal Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM, ) is a military award of India given to recognize "distinguished service of an exceptional order" to all ranks of the armed forces. The award is a peacetime equivalent of Uttam Yuddh Seva Medal, which is a Wartime D ...

on 26 January 2020. On 18 February 2020, Singh took over as the fourth Commandant of his alma mater, the

Naval War College, Goa The Naval War College (NWC) is a premier training institution of the Indian Navy, located in Goa. The college aims at developing leadership qualities of the officers of the Indian Armed Forces at the strategic and operational level. It is one of th ...

. After a one year stint, he was promoted to the rank of

and appointed Controller of Personnel Services (CPS) at Naval HQ. In August 2021, he was appointed Deputy Chief of Integrated Defence Staff (Operations) at HQ

Integrated Defence Staff The Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) is an organisation responsible for fostering coordination and enabling prioritisation across the different branches of the Indian Armed Forces. It is composed of representatives from the Indian Army, Indian Navy ...

(IDS). On 1 April 2023, he was appointed the 37th Vice Chief of the Naval Staff. He was appointed as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command (FOC-in-C WNC) on 5 December 2023. He assumed the post on 4 January 2024 succeeding

Dinesh K Tripathi Admiral (India), Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi, Param Vishisht Seva Medal, PVSM, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, AVSM, Nau Sena Medal, NM (born 15 May 1964) is a serving four star flag officer of the Indian Navy. He is the current and the 26th Chief of ...

Personal life

Singh is married to Zarine Lord Singh, a former fashion model. The couple has a daughter, Payal, and a son, Samar.

Awards and decorations

Singh was awarded the

in 2009, the

in 2020 and the

Param Vishisht Seva Medal Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM) (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: , ) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of India. It is the highest peacetime medal of the Indian Armed Forces, and is awarded for "dist ...

in 2025 Source:

References