Director General of the Indian Coast Guard

The Director General of the Indian Coast Guard is the head of the Indian Coast Guard. The DG ICG has their office in the Coast Guard Headquarters in New Delhi. Appointed by the Government of India, the DG ICG reports to the Minister of Defence. The Director General is assisted by four Deputy Directors General, each holding the rank of inspector-general, and other senior officers heading various staff divisions. The Additional Director General of the ICG serves as the second-in-command to the Director General.
The post of Director General of the Indian Coast Guard is held by a three-star rank holder as a position and is not a rank in itself. It is equivalent to Vice Admiral of the Indian Navy, Lieutenant General of the Indian Army, Air Marshal of the Indian Air Force, and the Director General of Central Armed Police Forces/State Police Forces. The rank of Additional Director General of the Indian Coast Guard is equivalent to that of a Lieutenant General of the Indian Army.
Paramesh Sivamani is the current Director General of the Indian Coast Guard who assumed the office after Rakesh Pal died on 18th August 2024 following a cardiac arrest.

History

The Indian Coast Guard came into being on 19 August 1978. The new service was to function under the overall command and control of a Director general. Vice Admiral V. A. Kamath, deputed from the Indian Navy, served as the first DG ICG. Appointed on 19 August 1978, he served in the capacity until 31 March 1980.
Until 2016, appointees to the position of the Director General were Vice Admirals in the Indian Navy who were deputed to the Coast Guard with the exceptions of Rameshwar Singh and P. Paleri - two naval officers who were permanently deputed to the Coast Guard service after serving in the Navy. In 2016, Rajendra Singh Bisht became first Indian Coast Guard officer to serve as its Director General.

Apart from heading the Coast Guard, the DGICG is also:

Chairman, National Maritime Search and Rescue Board
Chairman, National Oil-spill Disaster Contingency Plan Committee
Chairman, Offshore Security Co-ordination Committee, of which the Flag Officer Defence Advisory Group is a member.
Indian Governor to Regional Co-operation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against ships in Asia

The badges of rank have a crossed sword and baton over three eight-pointed stars and the Ashoka emblem above, on a golden shoulder board. The Director General wears gorget patches which are navy blue patches with three golden stars and oak leaves under the three golden stars. In addition to this, the double-breasted reefer jacket has three golden sleeve stripes consisting of a broad band with two narrower bands.

- Died in office