The
Indian Coast Guard (ICG) is a branch of the
Indian Armed ForcesThe Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of India. They consist of the Army, Navy and Air Force, supported by three paramilitary forces and various inter-service institutions such as the Strategic Forces Command.The President of India is...
. Its mission is the protection of
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
's maritime interests and maritime law enforcement with jurisdiction over both territorial and international waters.
ICG was formally established on 18th August 1978 as an armed force of the Union by the
Coast Guard Act, 1978. It operates under the
Department of Defence of the Union Ministry of Defence.
The Coast Guard works in close cooperation with the
Indian NavyThe Indian Navy is the naval branch of the armed forces of India. The President of India serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff , usually a four-star officer in the rank of Admiral, commands the Navy...
,
Department of FisheriesThe Ministry of Agriculture, a branch of the Government of India, is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules and regulations and laws relating to agriculture in India. The 3 broad areas of scope for the Ministry are agriculture, food processing and co-operation. The ministry...
,
Department of RevenueThe Ministry of Finance is an important ministry within the Government of India. It concerns itself with taxation, financial legislation, financial institutions, capital markets, center and state finances, and the Union Budget....
(
CustomsCustoms is an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties and for controlling the flow of goods including animals, transports, personal effects and hazardous items in and out of a country...
) and the Central and State police forces. The ICG is usually and currently headed by a naval officer of the rank of Vice-Admiral on deputation, although one of the Director Generals (the 16th), Prabhakaran Paleri, was a Naval officer on permanent secondment to the Coast Guard. Subsequent Director Generals have again all been from the
Indian NavyThe Indian Navy is the naval branch of the armed forces of India. The President of India serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff , usually a four-star officer in the rank of Admiral, commands the Navy...
.
Missions
The Indian Coast Guard's motto, in keeping with its missions, is
वयम रक्षामः (
Vayam Rakshamah), which translates from
SanskritSanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
as
We Protect. Its missions are:
- Protection of maritime resources
- Maritime safety
Maritime safety information is information that is broadcast to mariners by official agencies for their safety.Maritime safety messages consist of messages such as weather warning, warnings about dangers to navigation, failure of navigation devices....
, search and rescueSearch and rescue is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger.The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, mostly based upon terrain considerations...
- Law enforcement in territorial
Territorial waters, or a territorial sea, as defined by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, is a belt of coastal waters extending at most from the baseline of a coastal state...
as well as international watersThe terms international waters or trans-boundary waters apply where any of the following types of bodies of water transcend international boundaries: oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed regional seas and estuaries, rivers, lakes, groundwater systems , and wetlands.Oceans,...
- Protection of marine ecology and environment
- Scientific data collection and support
- Maritime defence support
History
The establishment of the
Indian Coast Guard was first proposed by the
Indian Navy to provide non-military maritime services to the nation. In the 1960s, sea-borne smuggling of goods was threatening India's domestic economy. The Indian Customs Department frequently called upon the Indian Navy for assistance with patrol and interception in the anti-smuggling effort.
The Nag Chaudhri Committee was constituted with participation from the Indian Navy and the
Indian Air ForceThe Indian Air Force is the air arm of the Indian armed forces. Its primary responsibility is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during a conflict...
to study the problem. In August 1971, the committee identified the requirement to patrol India's vast coastline; setup a registry of offshore fishing vessels in order to identify illegal activity; and establish a capable and well-equipped force to intercept vessels engaged in illegal activities. The committee also looked at the number and nature of the equipment, infrastructure and personnel required to provide these services.
By 1973, India had started a program to acquire the equipment and started deputing personnel from the Indian Navy for these anti-smuggling and law enforcement tasks, under the provisions of the
Maintenance of Internal Security Act. The Indian Navy sensed that the
law enforcementLaw enforcement broadly refers to any system by which some members of society act in an organized manner to promote adherence to the law by discovering and punishing persons who violate the rules and norms governing that society...
nature of these duties diverged from its core mission as a military service. Admiral
Sourendra Nath KohliSourendra Nath Kohli is a retired Indian Navy admiral who served as the 9th Chief of the Naval Staff from March 1, 1973 until February 29, 1976. Kohli served as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Naval Command during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971 and was responsible for the...
, then Chief of Naval Staff, hence made a recommendation to the Defense Secretary outlining the need for a separate maritime service to undertake these duties and offering the Navy's assistance in its establishment. On 31 August 1974, the Defense Secretary submitted a note to the Cabinet Secretary proposing cabinet action on Admiral Kohli's recommendation.
As a result, in September 1974, the Indian cabinet setup the Rustamji Committee with participation from the Navy, the Air Force and the Department of Revenue to examine gaps in security and law enforcement between the roles of the Indian Navy and the central and state police forces. The discovery of oil off
Bombay HighBombay High is an offshore oilfield off the coast of Mumbai , India. The oil operations are run by India's Oil and Natural Gas Corporation ....
further emphasized the need for a
maritime law enforcement and protection service. The committee submitted its recommendation for the establishment of the
Indian Coast Guard under the
Ministry of Defense on 31 July 1975. Bureaucratic wrangling followed, with the Cabinet Secretary making a recommendation to place the service under the
Ministry of Home AffairsMinistry of Home Affairs , known as the Home Ministry or MHA, is an Indian government ministry. It is an interior ministry mainly responsible for the maintenance of Internal security and domestic policy.-Ministerial Team:...
. Fortunately, then Prime Minister
Indira GandhiIndira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
overruled the Cabinet Secretary and decided to accept the original recommendation of the Rustamji Committee to place the service under the
Ministry of Defense.
An interim
Indian Coast Guard came into being on 1 February 1977 equipped with two small corvettes and five patrol boats transferred from the Navy. The duties and functions of the service were formally defined in the
Coast Guard Act, which was passed by India's parliament on 18 August 1978 and came into immediate effect. Vice Admiral V.A. Kamath of the Indian Navy was appointed the founding Director General. Prime Minister
Morarji DesaiMorarji Ranchhodji Desai was an Indian independence activist and the fourth Prime Minister of India from 1977–79. He was the first Indian Prime Minister who did not belong to the Indian National Congress...
inspected the Guard of Honour at the service's inauguration. Vice Admiral Kamath proposed a 5-year plan to develop the ICG into a potent force by 1984, but the full potential of this plan was not immediately realized due to an economic resource crunch.
The Indian Coast Guard conducts exercises with the other coast guards of the world. In May 2005, the ICG agreed to establish liaison links with Pakistan's
Maritime Security AgencyPakistan Maritime Security Agency is a para-military law enforcement agency in Pakistan. Pakistan Maritime Security Agency responsible for protecting territorial waters of Pakistan. This should not be confused with the Maritime Wing of Pakistan Coast Guards, which performs Littoral patrolling of...
(PMSA). In 2006, the Indian Coast Guard conducted exercises with its
JapaneseThe , formerly the Maritime Safety Agency, is the Japanese coast guard. Comprising about 12,000 personnel, it is under the oversight of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, and is responsible for the protection the coast-lines of Japan...
and
KoreanThe Korea Coast Guard is responsible for maritime safety and control off the coast of South Korea. The KCG is an external branch of Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs at peacetime...
counterparts.
One of the historic operational successes of the ICG occurred in October 1999, with the recapture at high seas of Panamanian-registered Japanese cargo ship,
MV Alondra Rainbow, hijacked off
IndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. Her crew was rescued off Phuket,
ThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
. The ship had been repainted as MV
Mega Rama, and was spotted off
Kochi-Places:* Kochi, a city in the state of Kerala, India, formerly known as Cochin* Kingdom of Cochin, a former feudal city-state on Malabar Coast, India** Fort Kochi, one of the three main urban components which constitute the present day city of Kochi, Kerala, India...
, heading towards
PakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. She was chased by
ICGS Tarabai and of the Indian Navy, and apprehended.. It was the first successful prosecution of armed pirates in over a century.
After the
2008 Mumbai attacksThe 2008 Mumbai attacks were more than 10 coordinated shooting and bombing attacks across Mumbai, India's largest city, by Islamist attackers who came from Pakistan...
, the Indian government initiated a program to expand the ICG force, assets and infrastructure. The force is expected to be tripled between 2010-2019 in man power, vessels as well as aircraft.
Comparison of rank structure with other Defence Services
| GOVERNMENT PAY GRADE | COASTGUARD RANKS | INDIAN NAVY RANKS | INDIAN ARMY RANKS | INDIAN AIR FORCE RANKS |
| Cabinet/Chief of Staff Scale (Rs. 90,000, Fixed) |
No Equivalent |
Admiral |
General |
Air Chief Marshal |
| Apex Grade (Rs. 80,000, Fixed) |
No Equivalent |
Vice Admiral (FoC-in-C) |
Lieutenant General (GoC-in-C) |
Air Marshal (AoC-in-C) |
| Higher Administrative Grade+ (Rs. 75500-80000) |
Director General |
Vice Admiral |
Lieutenant General |
Air Marshal |
| Rs. 37400-67000 with Grade Pay Rs 10000/- |
Inspector General |
Rear Admiral |
Major General |
Air Vice Marshal |
| Rs. 37400-67000 with Grade Pay Rs 8900/- |
Deputy Inspector General |
Commodore (IN) |
Brigadier |
Air Commodore |
| Rs. 37400-67000 with Grade Pay Rs 8700/- |
Commandant |
Captain (IN) |
Colonel |
Group Captain |
| Rs. 37400-67000 with Grade Pay Rs 8000/- |
No Equivalent |
Commander (IN) |
Lieutenant Colonel |
Wing Commander |
| Rs. 15600-39100 with Grade Pay Rs 7600/- |
Commandant (Junior Grade) |
No Equivalent |
No Equivalent |
No Equivalent |
| Rs. 15600-39100 with Grade Pay Rs 6600/- |
Deputy Commandant |
Lieutenant Commander (IN) |
Major |
Squadron Leader |
| Rs. 15600-39100 with Grade Pay Rs 6100/- |
No Equivalent |
Lieutenant (IN) |
Captain |
Flight Lieutenant |
| Rs. 15600-39100 with Grade Pay Rs 5400/- |
Assistant Commandant^, Assistant Commandant† |
Sub Lieutenant (IN) |
Lieutenant |
Flying Officer |
+ With three years seniority
^ After getting Watch Keeping Certificate or Wings
† Under training after completion of Phase III afloat training and during sub courses
◊ Under training after completion of Phase II afloat training
₳ Rank no longer exist or given to trainee officers
Officers are appointed in the Coast Guard in one of three branches, as either General Duty officer, Pilot officer , Technical officer or Law officers. Women are appointed as officers in all three branches, but serve only on shore installations. They are not deployed on board Coast Guard ships.
General Duty officers
General Duty officers of the Coast Guard are assigned operational tasks, including command of weapons systems, navigation systems, crews and vessels. Command of ships at sea can only be exercised by General Duty officers. Command of Coast Guard operations at sea, and the safety of crew and ships is the primary responsibility of these officers.
Pilot officers
Pilot officers are appointed into the Air Wing of the Coast Guard. They may serve on shore at a Coast Guard Air Station or Air Enclave, or operate rotary wing aircraft from Coast Guard ships.
Technical officers
Technical officers are responsible for operation of advanced technology and sensor systems on board Coast Guard vessels and aircraft, as well as on shore installations. They also command the maintenance wings of the force. Technical officers are usually required to have an Engineering background.
Law Officers
Law officers act as legal advisers to their respective commanders. They also prosecute and defend cases filed by or against the Indian Coast Guard.Presently, there is one law officer posted in each of the four Regions.The Law Officers in Indian Coast Guard have a strength of 10 at present including two lady officers.The legal Branch in the Indian Coast Guard is headed by a Deputy Inspector General(DIG), who is designated as the Chief Law Officer(CLO).
Enrolled Personnel
Enrolled Personnel in the Coast Guard serve as either a
Yantrik (Technician) or
Navik (Sailor).
Yantriks are responsible for operating and maintaining mechanical, electrical or aeronautical equipment and systems on board the Coast Guard vessels and aircraft.
Naviks may further serve in the General Duty or Domestic branches. The General Duty
Naviks serve as sailors, weapons systems operators, communication specialists, divers, etc or in specific maritime or aviation support roles. Domestic branch
Naviks serve in roles such as stewards, cooks, etc on board Coast Guard vessels.& all duties where is urgent basis may be weapons operate as well as general duty
Training
Currently, ICG personnel undergo Basic Training at the
Indian Naval AcademyThe Indian Naval Academy is the initial officer training establishment of the Indian Navy, located in Ezhimala, Kerala. Situated between Mount Dilli and the Kavvayi backwaters, NAVAC has a 7 km beach front on the Arabian Sea. It conducts basic training for all officers inducted into the...
, Ezhimala while the
Indian Coast Guard AcademyThe Indian Coast Guard Academy is a training establishment for Indian Coast Guard personnel, which is currently under construction in Azhikkal, Kerala.-History:...
is under construction in
AzhikkalAzhikkal is a coastal village in Kannur district, Kerala, India. The village has a small port and a fishing harbour. It is the site for a proposed expanded cargo port. The Valapattanam River empties into the Arabian Sea at Azhikkal....
,
Kannur districtKannur District is one of the 14 districts in the state of Kerala, India. The town of Kannur is the district headquarters, and gives the district its name. The old name Cannanore is the anglicised form of the Malayalam name Kannur. Kannur District is bounded by Kasaragod District to the north and...
,
Keralaor Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
.
Organization
The Indian Coast Guard operations are split into 4 regions: Western Region headquartered in
MumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, Eastern Region headquartered in
ChennaiChennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
and the Andaman & Nicobar Region headquartered in
Port BlairPort Blair is the largest town and a municipal council in Andaman district in the Andaman Islands and the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India...
and North West Region headquartered at
Gandhinagar.
Leadership
The ICG is led by the
Director General of Coast Guard, who is usually an officer of the rank
Vice AdmiralVice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...
from the
Indian NavyThe Indian Navy is the naval branch of the armed forces of India. The President of India serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff , usually a four-star officer in the rank of Admiral, commands the Navy...
. The current ICG DG is Vice Admiral Anil Chopra, AVSM. Each region is headed by an Inspector General (IG) or a Deputy Inspector General (DIG). The IG and DIG are appointed as Coast Guard Officers, often graduates of the Indian Defence Service Colleges, though not necessarily.
Each of the regions is further divided into multiple districts, typically covering a coastal
state or a union territoryIndia is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on.-List of states and territories:...
.
Establishments
By the end of 2012, the Indian Coast Guard is on track to operate:
- 42 Coast Guard Stations
- 5 Coast Guard Air Stations
- 10 Coast Guard Air Enclaves
Surface vessels
Ships belonging to the Indian Coast Guard are prefixed
ICGS, abbreviation for
Indian Coast Guard Ship.
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Ship Class
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: right; background: #aacccc;"|Displacement
! style="text-align: centre; background: #aacccc;"|In service
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes
|-----
| colspan="6"|
In Service: 93 ships
|-----
| Sankalp class || Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel || || 2300 tons || 2 ||
|-----
| Samar class || Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel || || 2005 tons || 5 ||
|-----
|-----
| Vishwast class ||Offshore Patrol Vessel || || 1800 tons || 2
|-----
| Vikram class || Offshore Patrol Vessel || || 1220 tons || 9 ||
|-----
| Samudra class || Pollution Control Vessel(PCV) || ||3300 tons || 1 ||
|-----
| Jijabai Class || Inshore Patrol Vessels || || 200 tons || 13 ||
|-----
| Vadyar Class || Interceptor Craft || || 2.4 tons || 8 ||
|-----
| Bristol Class || Interceptor Craft || || 5.5 tons || 4 ||
|-----
| || Interceptor Boat || || 32 tons || 12 ||
|-----
| || Fast Patrol Vessel || || 215 tons || 15 ||
|-----
| || Extra Fast Patrol Vessel (XFPV) || || 270 tons || 7 ||
|-----
| || Seaward Defence Boat || || 203 tons || 2 ||
|-----
| || Inshore Patrol Craft || || 32 tons || 5 ||
|-----
| || Air Cushion Vehicle (Hovercraft) || || N.A. || 6 ||
|-----
| colspan="6"|
Under Construction/Order: 80 ships
|-----
| Sankalp Class || Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel || || 2230 tons || 1 being built ||
|-----
| Vishwast class || Offshore Patrol Vessel || || 1800 tons || 1 on order ||
|-----
| Samudra class || Pollution Control Vessel(PCV) || ||3300 tons || 2 being built ||
|-----
|Rani Abbakka Class || Inshore Patrol Vessel || || 275 tons || 2 being built
+ 6 on order ||
|-----
| || Interceptor Boat || || 75 tons || 1 being built
+ 5 on order ||
|-----
|
ABG Interceptor Class fast attack craftsThe ABG Interceptor Class vessels are series of eleven fast attack crafts being built by ABG Shipyard, Surat for the Indian coast guard. The ships are intended as a cost-effective platform for patrol and rescue operations in close coast and shallow waters.-Design:...
|| Interceptor Boat || || 75 tons || 9 built+ 2 on order
||
|-----
| || Air Cushion Vehicle (Hovercraft) || || N.A. || 12 on order||
|-----
| || (Hydrofoils) || || N.A. || 12 on order||
|-----
|
L&T Interceptor Class fast attack craftsThe L&T Interceptor class fast attack craft are a series of 36 interceptor boats being built by L&T Shipyard for the Indian Coast Guard. The ships are intended for patrol and rescue operations in India's Exclusive Economic Zone....
|| Interceptor Boat || || || 36 on order || L&T
|-----
| || Fast Patrol Vessels (FPV) || || || 20 on order || Cochin
|}
Aircraft inventory
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Variants
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|In service
! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes
|-----
|
HAL DhruvThe HAL Dhruv is a utility helicopter developed and manufactured by India's Hindustan Aeronautics Limited . Dhruv was first announced in November 1984. The ALH was designed with assistance from MBB in Germany. The Dhruv first flew in 1992; but, due to the changing demands of the Indian Army and...
|| || Utility helicopter || || 4 ||
|-----
| HAL Chetak || || Utility helicopter || || 18 ||
|-----
|
Dornier Do 228The Dornier 228 is a twin-turboprop STOL utility aircraft, manufactured by Dornier GmbH from 1981 until 1998. In 1983, Hindustan Aeronautics bought a production licence and manufactures the 228 for the Asian market sphere. Approximately 270 Do 228 were built at Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany and...
||
|| Maritime Surveillance
Search & Rescue || Do 228-101 || 24 || 18 built by HAL
|}
External links