INDIA: And on the Sea

After ten years, eight months and seven days of independence, an Indian last week finally took command of India’s navy, which has been operating and fighting under British commanders since 1613. At a sunset ceremony in landlocked New Delhi, Britain’s Vice Admiral Sir Stephen Carlill, 55, handed over control of the 41 ships and 8,800 men to Rear Admiral Ram Dass Katari, 46, the first Indian to reach flag rank. Many Indians had complained that the “Indianization” of their navy came too slowly, but the Indian government preferred to wait until its own officers were thoroughly groomed for command. Before he left for home, Britain’s Carlill was gratefully installed as an honorary vice admiral of the Indian navy.