Indian Navy to add 20% more men to its ranks

Given its increasing security responsibility in the region, the Indian Navy is set to augment its personnel levels by almost a quarter over the next few years by inducting technically qualified men and officers even as efforts are on to increase military infrastructure in the Andaman islands by upgrading three forward operating bases.

While the 50,000-plus Navy is suffering from an officer shortage of about 8 per cent, discussions at the recently concluded Naval Commanders Conference revolved around the requirement of qualified personnel over the next few years as a series of high-end platforms, including nuclear submarines, aircraft carriers and new warships are being inducted.

Sources said the Navy requires between 20-25 per cent more personnel over the next few years to safeguard the nation’s coastline and carry out its mandate as a net security provider in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). While there is no dearth of applicants, the Navy will struggle to attract talent as it requires highly technically qualified personnel to fill vacancies. All new officers of the Navy, for example, are required to hold an engineers degree.

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