Today, I write on pioneering role of Admiral AK Chatterji in the growth & development of our Navy. Though not known much outside navy I argue his contribution is akin to pioneers like Bhabha, Sarabhai. Print edition in 2 parts but full story in weblink thedailyguardian.com/remembering-th…
Folks, happy to share that on Sat, 02 Mar, I was awarded the 'Prerana Puraskar' by #MaharashtraSevaSangh a very well known & highly regarded, Mumbai based social & cultural organization. Spreading awareness about our Armed Forces is also one of its many objectives through one
2/n of its initiatives called #SaluteIndia. The award was given in recognition of 'my efforts in spreading awareness on maritime issues'. Am grateful & humbled by this gesture of MSS. Also, deeply grateful to my family & friends, senior Navy veterans, @indiannavy & my fellow
3/n. #MaritimeEnthusiasts at @MaritimeKS which has made this possible. The other awardee was #HavPandurangAmre, 21 Para SF veteran, Tololing Battle (Kargil) participant who since retirement in 2014 has been endeavoring & educating youth to join Armed Forces. Award was presented
Folks, 2 days ago, while on a short trip to Kolkota had the greatest privilege & pleasure of meeting #CdrRanendraNathGhosh or #RonnieGhosh as he is known. Sprightly & agile, at nearly 91 years, Ronnie sir, is one of the oldest veterans around & pioneer of Naval Aviation in India.
2/n. An alumnus of 3rd JSW, Ronnie G was commissioned on 01 Sep 54. Volunteering early for Naval Aviation, he trained in Begumpet/Hakimpet & then joined the Naval Jet Flight at Sulur in the late 50s. Selected as commissioning crew of INAS 300, he trained in UK & was part of first
3/n. White Tiger team commissioned in July 1960 at RNAS Brawdy. Incidentally he was the second person immediately after #RHTahiliani or #TallyHo to land on the Vikrant with the Sea Hawk fighter aircraft. #RonnieGhosh is also Indian Navy's first Air Warfare Instructor having done
Folks, coming in lil late on this, almost a month after the event, but sharing few snapshots of experiences at the wonderfully organized @PondyLitFest from 15 to 17 Sep, where I had the honour of participating in two sessions. To begin with, all sessions were of high quality and
2/n. Offered much food for thought. Second, it was personally educative to listen to & interact with the very erudite @swapan55, @IndicMeenakshi, @Sampadananda, @gchikermane, @monikahalan to name a few. It was a treat to exchange notes & thoughts with some of the brightest
3/n. Young minds in India today such as @vikramsampath, @ARanganathan72, @Iyervval, @ahluwaliadisha, @swati_gs, @RashmiDVS, @nandinisgTOI
It was good to see the amount of discussion, deliberations & even disagreements being voiced freely. As always was lovely to reconnect with
Thks. Folks, completed an extremely rewarding 4 day trip of #Hyderabad which featured 2 talks each at Military & Civilian institutions. Yesterday, had the honour of speaking to the Higher Defence Management Course participants at #CollegeofDefenceManagement doing an overview of
2/n. India's Maritime past & evaluating @indiannavy growth. The interaction that followed was very interesting & lively. Very good to see the academic & admin infra at the College, which encourages learning & cogitation. On previous day, 12 Sep, also had the honour of speaking at
3/n. the #CollegeofAirWarfare, to the participants of #HigherAirCommandCourse, on similar subjects. There too, the levels of interest and interaction were very high & educative. These two institutions have the creme de la creme of the 3 services at the Colonel/equivalent level
Yesterday, 17 Jul, had the great pleasure & privilege of addressing participants of the Higher Command Course 52, at the Army War College, Mhow, on 'Overview of India's Maritime History & a brief look at Indian Navy's journey since 1947'. The interaction that followed was
2/n. Rewarding & went on long indicating high interest of the participants in maritime matters. Have very fond memories of AWC from my previous visits & other associations. The sylvan surroundings, well-stocked library & academic atmosphere enable much cogitation on strategic
3/n. And Military issues. The visit was made more special this time by the fact that the Commandant #LtGenDPPandey was my Delta squadron mate, one course senior, in @NDA_Khadakwasla. Meeting him after nearly 40 years was special & hearing his perspectives on various aspects
Folks, last week I had the occasion to visit Wellington, near Ooty. Some notes of the same. I had the privilege of addressing the Naval Wing of 79th DSSC course on "Evaluating the growth & development of Indian Navy 1947 - 2023". A wide canvass that I hope I could do justice to.
2/n. Happily the 3 hour time slot enabled a granular approach touching upon various aspects of the topic. It was particularly nice to see the high level of interest, evidenced in the volley of penetrating questions & comments by the particpant officers which included 8 foreign
3/n. Students as well. It was also good to see some spouses of participants & faculty members attending the talk & evincing interest in the subject. A brief interaction with the Commandant #LtGenVirendraVats was extremely rewarding as was a detailed meeting with #RAdmPuruvirDas