Vice Admiral Swaminathan becomes controller of personnel services in army

Recipient of Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Vishisht Seva Medal, he has held several key operational, staff and training appointments in his naval career

Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan on Monday assumed charge as Controller of Personnel Services, Ministry of Defence said in a statement on Tuesday.

According to the statement, Swaminathan, who was commissioned into the Indian Navy on July 1 1987, is a specialist in Communication and Electronic Warfare. 

A recipient of the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal, the Admiral has held several key operational, staff and training appointments in his naval career, said the ministry. The charges held by him include the command of missile vessels INS Vidyut and INS Vinash; the missile corvette INS Kulish; the guided missile destroyer INS Mysore; and the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.

On promotion to the Flag rank, he served as the Chief Staff Officer (Training) at Headquarters Southern Naval Command, Kochi and played a key role in the conduct of all training in the Indian Navy, as per the ministry. He went on to head the work up organisation of the Navy as the Flag Officer Sea Training, after which he was privileged to be chosen for the extremely prestigious appointment of Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet. He then became Chief of Staff of the Western Naval Command, a position he held till assuming his current assignment.

Swaminathan is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla; the Joint Services Command and Staff College, Shrivenham, United Kingdom; the College of Naval Warfare, Karanja; and the United States Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, USA. Admiral's educational qualifications include a BSc degree from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, MSc in Telecommunications from Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi, MA in Defence Studies from King's College, London; MPhil in Strategic Studies from Mumbai University, and PhD in International Studies from Mumbai University.