An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, the Defence Services Staff College, the Naval War College, and the National Defence College, with BSc, MSc and MPhil degrees under his belt, Vice Admiral Pradeep Chauhan, AVSM & Bar, VSM, is currently the Director-General of the National Maritime Foundation, New Delhi, which is India’s foremost resource centre for the development and advocacy of strategies for the promotion and protection of India’s maritime interests.
The admiral retired on 30 November 2013 after an illustrious four-decade-long career in the Executive Branch of the Indian Navy. He has had a rich and varied naval career, which included a three-year deputation to the Government of Mauritius, where he set up and commanded the Mauritius National Coast Guard. He has been the principal evaluator of the Navy’s battle-tactics, the Head of the Naval Training Team at the Defence Services Staff College, and the Principal Director of Naval Operations.
His sea-going service incorporates command-appointments on four occasions, including the guided-missile frigate, INS Brahmaputra, and, culminating in his command of the aircraft carrier, the Viraat. As a Flag Officer, he was the Navy’s first Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (Foreign Cooperation & Intelligence), where he conceptualised and executed the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS).
As a Vice Admiral, he has been Chief of Staff of the Western Naval Command; and was, in his last naval appointment before retirement, the Commandant of the Indian Naval Academy (Ezhimala). He has been commended three times by the President of India for sustained distinguished service.
Admiral Chauhan has remained active after retirement and is a much sought-after thought-leader, leadership mentor, and an outstanding orator. Apart from being on the visiting faculty of the higher-command establishments of all three of India’s defence services, as also tri-service establishments such as the College of Defence Management, Hyderabad and the National Defence College, New Delhi, he has also been advising the government through his interaction with the Integrated Headquarters of the Ministry of Defence (Navy), the Ministry of External Affairs, the National Security Council Secretariat, and the Joint Intelligence Committee.
He is, in addition, a prolific writer with over 85 published professional articles and papers, and, a respected Adviser and Fellow of several important think-tanks including the Ananta-Aspen Centre; the Forum for Strategic and Security Studies; and, the Centre for Advanced Strategic and Security Studies.
