Suraj Berry

Rear Admiral Suraj Berry, AVSM, NM, VSM is a serving Flag officer in the Indian Navy. He currently serves as the Chief of Staff of the Andaman and Nicobar Command.[1] Before taking this appointment up, he commanded the Eastern Fleet of the Indian Navy. He previously served as the Commissioning Commanding Officer of the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.[2]

Rear Admiral Suraj Berry AVSM, NM, VSM
Rear Admiral Suraj Berry Assumes Charge as the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet (FOCEF)
Allegiance	India
Service/branch	Indian Navy
Years of service	1987 - Current
Rank	Rear Admiral
Commands held	INS Nirbhik INS Karmuk INS Talwar INS Vikramaditya Eastern Fleet
Awards	Ati Vishisht Seva Medal Nao Sena Medal Vishisht Seva Medal

Naval career

Berry was commissioned in the Indian Navy on 1 January 1987. He is a specialist in Gunnery and Missile Warfare.[3]

Berry's operational assignments include service aboard coastal patrol vessel INS Subhadra, missile boat INS Pralaya, and destroyers INS Ranjit, INS Ranvir, and INS Delhi. He has also served as the operations officer of a Mobile Missile Coastal Battery, and fleet gunnery officer of the Western Fleet.[4]

Berry's command assignments include the Veer-class missile vessel INS Nirbhik, the Kora-class missile corvette INS Karmuk, the Talwar-class stealth guided missile frigate INS Talwar, and the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, of which he was the commissioning Commanding Officer.[5]

In October 2016, Berry attained flag rank before becoming commander of the Eastern Fleet. He served in assistant roles with Indian High Commissioner of Sri Lanka and Maldives and the Chief of Naval Staff. He had director positions at the Directorate of Staff Requirement and at Naval Headquarters.[6]

Awards and decorations

Berry is a recipient of the Vishist Seva Medal in 2006 (awarded to him for services during the tsunami relief operations in Sri Lanka and Maldives. He is also the recipient of the Nao Sena Medal in 2015 (awarded for devotion to duty).[7] He was awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2020.[8]

See also

• Eastern Fleet
• INS Vikramaditya

References

1. "Rear Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan takes over as Eastern Fleet Commander". pib.gov.in.
2. "Rear Admiral Suraj Berry Assumes Charge as the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet | Indian Navy". www.indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
3. "Change of guard in Eastern Fleet". The Hindu. Special Correspondent. 31 March 2019. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 12 November 2019.CS1 maint: others (link)
4. Yemelyanenkov, Alexander; RIR, specially for (4 December 2013). "Commodore Suraj Berry's finest hour". www.rbth.com. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
5. "Russia Hands India Long-Awaited Aircraft Carrier". m.naharnet.com. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
6. "Rear Admiral Suraj Berry takes over command of Eastern Fleet at Visakhapatnam ceremony". Firstpost. Asian News International. 31 March 2019. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
7. Service, Hans News (30 March 2019). "Suraj Berry takes over the Command of Eastern Fleet". www.thehansindia.com. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
8. "Distinguished service and gallantry award winners on Republic day 2020". pib.gov.in.