Vice Admiral C.R. Praveen Nair took charge as the Commandant of the Indian Naval Academy (INA), Ezhimala, on Thursday, succeeding Vice Admiral Vineet McCarty. Vice Admiral Nair, a highly decorated officer with a distinguished career in the Indian Navy, brings extensive experience in Surface Warfare, Communications, and Electronic Warfare to his new role.

Commissioned into the Indian Navy on July 1, 1991, Vice Admiral Nair has an impressive academic and professional background. He is an alumnus of the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, and the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, the U.S. Additionally, he holds an MPhil in Defence and Strategic Studies from Mumbai University.

Throughout his career, Vice Admiral Nair has served in various key positions, including as Signal Communication Officer on several Indian Naval ships, Fleet Electronic Warfare Officer, and Fleet Communications Officer of the Western Fleet. He also held the position of Fleet Operations Officer of the Eastern Fleet from 2018 to 2019.

He has also led the Missile Corvette INS Kirch, commissioned the Guided Missile Destroyer INS Chennai, and commanded the Indian Navy’s largest warship, the Aircraft Carrier INS Vikramaditya. His shore assignments have included roles as Directing Staff at the Naval War College in Goa, Officer-in-Charge of Signal School, and Commodore (Personnel) at the Directorate of Personnel, Naval Headquarters. Furthermore, Vice Admiral Nair has been a member of the Indian Naval Strategic and Operational Council (INSOC), the Navy’s premier think-tank, for over three years.

Commanded Western Fleet

Promoted to Rear Admiral in January 2022, Vice Admiral Nair was appointed as the Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (Policy and Plans) at Naval Headquarters. Before his current appointment as Commandant of the INA, he commanded the Western Fleet of the Indian Navy upon his promotion to Vice Admiral.

Agencies