Indian Navy Reveals New Epaulettes For Officers To Break Away From British Colonial Influence

In his Navy Day Address at Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, on 4 December, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that senior officers of the navy will wear newly designed epaulettes that reflect the true maritime heritage of the country.

Image Credit: Posted by Indian Navy on X.

In this regard, the Indian Navy revealed the new design of the epaulettes on Friday.

These new epaulettes have been inspired by the Seal of a Great Indian Ruler, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, with the decision made to move away from traditions, emblems and symbols associated with the colonial British Empire and to reiterate India’s rich and diverse maritime heritage.

The new epaulettes will be adorned by the Navy Chief, Vice Admirals, and Rear Admirals starting 1 January 2024. They carry five changes over the previous ones.

Firstly, the Crown-inspired red background with the national emblem has been replaced by an octagon inspired by the Maratha ruler’s Rajmudra or Royal Seal.

The Navy stated that the octagon symbolises 8 cardinal directions and shows an all-around, holistic, long-term vision of the Indian Naval Force.

The generic sword has been done away with, and instead, there is now a straight Indian-origin double-edged sword, like the one used by Rajputs. The baton has been replaced by a telescope that is a symbol of long-term vision and foresight. The stars on the epaulettes also look different; however, per sources, this is just an aesthetic change and does not signify anything.

The last change concerns the golden navy button, which no longer has the foul anchor with nautical rope, but a clear anchor has been introduced in the new design.

The clear anchor represents the steadfastness of the Indian Navy to face difficulties and challenges that come its way. It also portrays the mission and aspirations of the sailors.

Adopting the new design reaffirms the country’s commitment to the two pillars of PanchPran’ – ‘Virasat Par Garv’ & ‘Ghulami ki Mansikta se Mukti. The PM also said that the nomenclature of naval ranks will be in accordance with Indian culture.

These changes are some of the few that the Navy has introduced since September 2022 to shed the British colonial influence and adopt Indian traditions. Hence, a new ensign has been adopted, batons for commanders have been done away with and wearing traditional Indian clothes in officers’ mess has been allowed.

Per sources, gender-neutral rank changes will also be announced soon and around 65,00 sailors will be given new ranks.

References: The Hindu, Hindustan Times

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