'Navy a microcosm of India'

Navy Chief Admiral R.K. Dhowan on Thursday termed the force a "microcosm of India".

At the annual press conference of the Navy Day which is on Friday, Admiral Dhowan was asked if he felt the "growing intolerance and radicalisation" posed national and global threat to security.

The navy chief, however, said he would like to talk about it in context of the navy. "I would like to talk about it in the Navy.... The navy is a microcosm of India."

"We have personnel from every state, every religion. Therefore, navy is totally secular in nature and it starts from our individual and smallest unit. That trend and that feeling, and that spirit is maintained in the navy," he said.

He was asked the question in context of former navy chief Admiral Laxminarayan Ramdas (retd) writing an open letter to President Pranab Mukherjee condemning the attacks on minorities and Dalits under the rule of the current government.