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Indian Navy: commands and major bases

The Navy's three commands, their headquarters, key bases such as INS Kadamba at Karwar, and the current Chief of the Naval Staff.

Pareto Academy · updated 26 October 2026

At a glance

The Indian Navy is organised into three commands: Western (Mumbai), Eastern (Visakhapatnam) and Southern (Kochi). The first two are operational commands facing the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal; the Southern Command is mainly the training command. Each is led by a Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief (FOC-in-C) of Vice Admiral rank, and the Navy as a whole is headed by the Chief of the Naval Staff in New Delhi.

Key facts

  • Chief of the Naval Staff: Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, the 27th CNS (since 31 May 2026, succeeding Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi)
  • Supreme Commander of the armed forces: the President of India
  • Ministry: Defence
  • Western Naval Command: HQ Mumbai; FOC-in-C Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan (since 30 May 2026)
  • Eastern Naval Command: HQ Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh)
  • Southern Naval Command: HQ Kochi (Kerala); training command
  • Andaman and Nicobar Command: India's only tri-service theatre command, HQ Port Blair (Sri Vijaya Puram)
  • INS Kadamba: naval base at Karwar, Karnataka, commissioned in 2005, built under Project Seabird; part of the Western Naval Command
  • Navy Day: 4 December (marks the 1971 attack on Karachi, Operation Trident)

How it works

The three commands at a glance.

Command HQ Role and area
Western Mumbai Arabian Sea; Western Fleet based at Mumbai
Eastern Visakhapatnam Bay of Bengal; Eastern Fleet based at Visakhapatnam
Southern Kochi Training command; southern waters

Project Seabird. After the 1971 war showed how crowded Mumbai harbour was, the Navy planned a dedicated base on the west coast. Approved in 1999, Project Seabird built INS Kadamba at Karwar. Its later phases aim to make it one of the largest naval bases east of the Suez Canal, able to berth aircraft carriers and submarines.

Other important places. Visakhapatnam hosts the submarine arm and Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL); Kochi has Cochin Shipyard (builder of INS Vikrant) and the Southern Command's training schools; INS Varsha, a new base near Rambilli on the east coast, is being developed for submarines.

Recent developments

  • 16 Oct 2026: Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan commissioned INS Samarthak, the Navy's first indigenous multi-purpose vessel, at Karwar (INS Kadamba). Built by L&T at Kattupalli with over 75% indigenous content, it is the first of four and will be a trials platform for new weapons, sensors and unmanned systems.
  • 6 Oct 2026: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched Fleet Support Ship-1 "Surya" at HSL, Visakhapatnam, the first of five 43,500-tonne ships that will refuel and resupply warships at sea.
  • 31 May 2026: Admiral Krishna Swaminathan took over as Chief of the Naval Staff.

Exam traps

  • Southern Naval Command (Kochi) is the training command, not a combat fleet command.
  • Eastern Naval Command is at Visakhapatnam, not Chennai; Western is at Mumbai, not Karwar.
  • INS Kadamba (Karwar) comes under the Western command; Karwar is in Karnataka, not Goa.
  • The Andaman and Nicobar Command is a tri-service command, not one of the Navy's three commands.
  • Navy Day is 4 December; Army Day is 15 January; Air Force Day is 8 October.

Quick check

  • Q: Where is the headquarters of the Eastern Naval Command? A: Visakhapatnam.
  • Q: Under which project was INS Kadamba at Karwar built? A: Project Seabird.
  • Q: Who is the Chief of the Naval Staff? A: Admiral Krishna Swaminathan.

Further reading

Sources

In the news

Every time this topic has appeared in our current affairs, newest first:

  1. Week of 15–21 October 2026INS Samarthak, the Navy's first indigenous multi-purpose vessel, commissioned at Karwar
  2. Week of 1–7 October 2026Rajnath Singh launches the Navy's first Fleet Support Ship, "Surya"