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The history of the
Indian Navy can be traced back to 1612 when Captain
Best encountered and defeated the Portuguese. This
encounter, as also the trouble caused by the pirates,
forced the British East India Company to maintain a
small fleet at Swally, near Surat(Gujarat). The First Squadron
of fighting ships arrived on 5 September 1612, forming
what was then called the Honourable East India
Company's Marine. It was responsible for the
protection of the East India Company's trade in the
Gulf of Cambay and the river mouths of the Tapti and
Narmada. The officers and the men of this force went
on to play an important role in surveying the Arabian,
Persian and Indian coastlines.
Although Bombay had
been ceded to the British in 1662, they physically
took possession of the island on 8 February 1665, only
to pass it on to the East India Company on 27
September 1668./ As a consequence, the Honourable East
India Company's Marine also became responsible for the
protection of trade off Bombay.
By 1686, with British
commerce having shifted predominantly to Bombay, the
name of this force was changed to Bombay Marine. This
force rendered unique service, fighting not only the
Portuguese, Dutch and French, but also interlopers and
pirates of various nationalities. The Bombay Marine
was involved in combat against the Marathas and the
Sidis and participated in the Burma War in 1824.
 In 1830, the Bombay
Marine was renamed Her Majesty's Indian Navy. With the
capture of Aden by the British and the institution of
the Indus Flotilla, the Navy's commitments grew
manifold, and its deployment in the China War in 1840
bears adequate testimony to its proficiency.
Whilst the Navy's
strength continued to grow, it underwent numerous
changes of nomenclature over the next few decades. It
was renamed the Bombay Marine from 1863 to 1877, after
which it became Her Majesty's Indian Marine. At this
time, the Marine had two divisions, the Eastern
Division based at Calcutta under the Superintendent,
Bay of Bengal, and the Western Division at Bombay
under the Superintendent, Arabian Sea. In recognition
of the services rendered during various campaigns, its
title was changed to Royal Indian Marine in 1892, by
which time it consisted of over 50 vessels. The Royal
Indian Marine went into action with a fleet of
minesweepers, patrol vessels and troop carriers during
the First World War when mines were detected off
Bombay and Aden, and was utilised mainly for
patrolling, ferrying troops and carrying war stores to
Iraq, Egypt and East Africa.
The first Indian to
be granted a commission was Sub Lieutenant D.N
Mukherji who joined the Royal Indian Marine as an
engineer officer in 1928. In 1934, the Royal Indian
Marine was re-organised into the Royal Indian Navy,
and was presented the King's Colour in 1935 in
recognition of its services. At the outbreak of the
Second World War, the Royal Indian Navy consisted of
eight warships. By the end of the war, its strength
had risen to 117 combat vessels and 30,000 personnel
who had seen action in various theatres of operations.
On India attaining
Independence, the Royal Indian Navy consisted of 32
ageing vessels suitable only for coastal patrol, along
with 11,000 officers and men. The senior officers were
drawn from the Royal Navy, with R Adm ITS Hall, CIE,
being the first Post-independence Commander-in-Chief.
The prefix 'Royal' was dropped on 26 January 1950 with
India being constituted as a Republic. The first
Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Navy was Adm Sir
Edward Parry, KCB, who handed over to Adm Sir Mark
Pizey, KBE, CB, DSO in 1951. Adm Pizey also became the
first Chief of the Naval Staff in 1955, and was
succeeded by V Adm SH Carlill, CB, DSO.
On
22 April 1958
V Adm RD Katari assumed office as the
first Indian Chief of the Naval Staff.
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