What are the posts and ranks in the Indian Army?

The Indian Army is the most prestigious and respectable department in the country in the world. Like all other government and private institutions, the Indian Army also assigns ranks and positions to its personnel.Indian Army Rank) remain divided. Many rural and urban youth of our country are planning to do jobs by joining the army. Such type of students must know the rank details from here before preparing to join the army. At present, more than 14 lakh soldiers are engaged in the Indian Army.

Positions and Ranks in the Indian Army

Soldiers who are always ready to serve the people of the country, there are officers and employees of different ranks under the army. According to these posts, the soldiers are also identified. Similarly, according to the rank, their uniforms and badges also differ, seeing which they can know on which post this officer is working and what is his rank. The Indian Army is known as the fourth best army in the world.

17 ranks have been created in the Indian Army, which are divided into 3 classes. Army soldiers are also given different salaries according to their rank and position. In this way, the soldier who is present in the higher position in the army gets more salary. In general, the posts in the Indian Army are classified into two parts – Senior posts and Junior posts.

Ranks have been made in the Indian Army like other western countries, which in particular reflect the British and Commonwealth armies. Names are also kept for these ranks according to the English army. At present, the ranks in the Indian Army are divided into 3 categories –

• Commissioned Officer (CO)
• Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO)
• Other Ranks (Non-Commissioned Officers and Soldiers)

Commissioned Officer (CO)

Officers commissioned into the Indian Army hold the same rank as All India Services and Group ‘A’ service officers. He handles the leadership in the army. These officers can lead anywhere from Platoon, Company, Battalion, Brigade, Division, Corps and the whole army. All officers join the army as officer cadets. The rank of officer cadet refers to the officer in uniform without insignia. For various promotions and appointments, Indian Army officers are kept through different courses from time to time. They are also evaluated according to their merit during their service.

Indian Army officers go through different courses like Young Officers Course, Junior Command Course, DSSC Wellington. They have to complete these courses from different institutes. Similar system is applicable to the officers of Indian Navy and Airforce.

field marshal

It is included in the highest ranking post in the Indian Army, which is a five-star rank general officer. This post is given as an honor and not available to any regular officer. Like an officer who has shown good valor in a battle. The title of field marshal remains even after the completion of service in the army. So far only two officers have got this rank i.e. Sam Manekshaw and Kondera Madappa Cariappa. The insignia for this post consists of a crossed sword and 5 stars and a crossed baton with the emblem of the nation.

general

This is the highest rank in the Indian Army and the officer of this post is also called ‘Commander in Chief’. Officers of this rank carry the Ashoka Pillar emblem with a cross baton and saber and a star. The term of this post is for 3 years or till the age of 62 years.

Lieutenant General

It is the second highest ranking officer post in the army. Lieutenant General is a three star rank commissioned officer. Above its insignia, there is a crossed sword and a stick along with the national emblem.

major general

Major general ranks next to lieutenant general in the hierarchy of ranks in the army. The insignia of this officer consists of a sword and a baton with a star on top. Major General’s collar patch consists of 2 gold stars.

brigadier

It is a one star rank commissioned officer who ranks above Colonel and below Major General. The insignia for this post consists of 3 stars in a triangle and the national emblem above.

Colonel

The post of Colonel in the Indian Army is above Lieutenant Colonel and below Brigadier. The insignia of this post is 2 stars and the national emblem above.

lieutenant colonel

This officer is the commander of a battalion in the army, who gets the responsibility of hundreds of soldiers or even a general staff officer in a division or corps. The insignia of this post consists of a star and the national emblem at the top.

major

Major has got the rank above captain and below lieutenant in the army and the insignia of the officer of this rank is the national insignia.

Captain

After Major in the Army, there is the rank of Captain whose commission is for 2 years of service. The captain’s insignia consists of 3 stars in a row. After following all the rules for 2 years in the army, you get the rank of captain.

lieutenant

This is a junior rank in the Indian Army. The officer gets the responsibility of looking after 40 to 60 subordinates. These people work directly under the lieutenant. The insignia of the officer of this post consists of 2 stars in a row.

Also Read: What is Five Year Plan?

Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO)

Officers of this rank get promotion from the rank of Non-Commissioned Officers. Senior non-commissioned officers get appointment to the post of JCO according to their merit and seniority. In this, there is compulsion of vacancies according to the post. There are officers of JCO rank between commissioned officers and NCOs. They are treated with a lot of respect in the army. All the ranks of the army address him as ‘Saheb’.

• JCOs get supervisory roles like – Subedar Major, Subedar and Naib Subedar.

These officers are similar to the Group-B i.e. Gazetted Officer of the Indian Government. They are recognized as a separate class by having some additional privileges. In Army they get right to a decent standard family quarters, second tier AC in railway travel. Performance and promotion test in the army gives promotion like officers from time to time.

Subedar Major

Subedar Major is the highest rank among the junior level officers. Thus Subedar Major is the last post of Junior Officer. These officers retire after 34 years of service. Their uniform consists of a golden national emblem (Ashoka Stambh) and a red-yellow stripe.

Subedar

These Nayaks are officers of higher rank than Subedar, who are known as a junior class officer. In their uniform, there are two stars in the air, two red strips and a yellow strip in the middle. Their service period lasts for 52 years.

naib subedar

Naib Subedar is the first CD in the ranks of junior officers in the Indian Army, which comes after Subedar. Their uniform consists of a five-pointed star and a red-yellow colored strip is attached to it. These officers serve for 28 years.

Other Ranks (Non-Commissioned Officers)

Other ranks in the Indian Army include non-commissioned officers and soldiers.

sergeant

They are selected according to the promotion of the soldiers in the army. The rank of Havaldar is the highest among non-commissioned officers. Their uniform has three stripes of yellow color in V shape. They retire after 24 years of service.

hero

Naik is the post in the army after Havaldar and before Lance Naik. Their uniform consists of three stripes of yellow color in V shape. He completes his tenure in 22 years.

lance hero

This post in the army comes after Nayak. There is a V shaped yellow stripe on the left side of their uniform. The service life of a Lance Naik is 22 years.

soldier

This post is the last post in the non-officer rank of the army. There is no insignia in their uniform, instead it bears the insignia of their regiment. He completes his tenure of 20 years.

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