Indian Coast Guard The Indian Coast Guard ( " Hindi " : भारतीय तटरक्षक , " Bhāratīya Taṭarakṣaka " ) ( ICG ) is the maritime Para Military Force ( PMF ) of the Union of India . Its mission is the protection of India ' s maritime interests and enforcement of maritime law with jurisdiction over the territorial waters of India , including contiguous zone & exclusive economic zone . ICG was formally established on 18 August 1978 as an armed force of the Union ( aka BSF , ITBP , CISF ) by the " Coast Guard Act , 1978 " . It operates under the Ministry of Defence . The Coast Guard works in close cooperation with the Indian Navy , Department of Fisheries , Department of Revenue ( Customs ) and the Central and State police forces . Mission . The Indian Coast Guard ' s motto is वयम रक्षामः ( " Vayam Rakshamah " ) , which translates from Sanskrit as We Protect . Missions of Indian Coast Guard : Additional Responsibilities of Indian Coast Guard : History . The establishment of the Indian Coast Guard was first proposed by the Indian Navy to provide non - military maritime services to the nation . In the 1960s , sea - borne smuggling of goods was threatening India ' s domestic economy . The Indian Customs Department frequently called upon the Indian Navy for assistance with patrol and interception in the anti - smuggling effort . The Nagchaudhuri Committee was constituted with participation from the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force to study the problem . In August 1971 , the committee identified the requirement to patrol India ' s vast coastline , set up a registry of offshore fishing vessels in order to identify illegal activity , and establish a capable and well - equipped force to intercept vessels engaged in illegal activities . The committee also looked at the number and nature of the equipment , infrastructure and personnel required to provide those services . By 1973 , India had started a program to acquire the equipment and started deputing personnel from the Indian Navy for these anti - smuggling and law enforcement tasks , under the provisions of the " Maintenance of Internal Security Act " . The Indian Navy sensed that the law enforcement nature of these duties diverged from its core mission as a military service . Admiral Sourendra Nath Kohli , then Chief of Naval Staff , hence made a recommendation to the Defense Secretary outlining the need for a separate maritime service to undertake those duties and offering the Navy ' s assistance in its establishment . On 31 August 1974 , the Defense Secretary submitted a note to the Cabinet Secretary proposing cabinet action on Admiral Kohli ' s recommendation . As a result , in September 1974 , the Indian cabinet set up the " Rustamji Committee " , under the chairmanship of Khusro Faramurz Rustamji , with participation from the Navy , the Air Force and the Department of Revenue to examine gaps in security and law enforcement between the roles of the Indian Navy and the central and state police forces . The discovery of oil off Bombay High further emphasised the need for a maritime law enforcement and protection service . The committee submitted its recommendation for the establishment of the Indian Coast Guard under the Ministry of Defense on 31 July 1975 . Bureaucratic wrangling followed , with the Cabinet Secretary making a recommendation to place the service under the Ministry of Home Affairs . Then prime minister Indira Gandhi overruled the Cabinet Secretary and decided to accept the original recommendation of the Rustamji Committee to place the service under the Ministry of Defense . An interim Indian Coast Guard came into being on 1 February 1977 , equipped with two small corvettes and five patrol boats transferred from the Navy . The duties and functions of the service were formally defined in the " Coast Guard Act " , which was passed by India ' s parliament on 18 August 1978 and came into immediate effect . Vice Admiral V . A . Kamath of the Indian Navy was appointed the founding Director General . Prime Minister Morarji Desai inspected the Guard of Honour at the service ' s inauguration . Vice Admiral Kamath proposed a five - year plan to develop the ICG into a potent force by 1984 , but the full potential of this plan was not immediately realised due to an economic resource crunch . One of the historic operational successes of the ICG occurred in October 1999 , with the recapture at high seas of a Panamanian - registered Japanese cargo ship , " MV Alondra Rainbow " , hijacked off Indonesia . Her crew was rescued off Phuket , Thailand . The ship had been repainted as MV " Mega Rama " , and was spotted off Kochi , heading towards Pakistan . She was chased by " ICGS Tarabai " and of the Indian Navy , and apprehended . It was the first successful prosecution of armed pirates in over a century . The Indian Coast Guard conducts exercises with the other coast guards of the world . In May 2005 , the ICG agreed to establish liaison links with Pakistan ' s Maritime Security Agency ( PMSA ) . In 2006 , the Indian Coast Guard conducted exercises with its Japanese and Korean counterparts . After the 2008 Mumbai attacks , the Indian government initiated a program to expand the ICG force , assets and infrastructure . The force is expected to be tripled between 2010 and 2019 in manpower , vessels and aircraft . Personnel . Coast Guard Officers . The officers in the Coast Guard have the same rank structure as the Central Armed Police Forces . The Director General Coast Guard is usually a Vice Admiral rank officer on deputation from the Indian Navy . Officers are appointed in the Coast Guard in one of four branches , as either General Duty officer , Pilot officer , Technical officer or Law officers . Lady Officers have two branches i . e . General Duty officer OR Pilot officer and serve on shore establishments / Air Stations / Headquarters . They are not deployed on board Indian Coast Guard ships . General Duty Officers . The command of ships at sea can only be exercised by officers of the General Duty ( GD ) branch . The key functions of a GD officer would be to operate weapons , sensors and different kinds of equipment on - board a ship . The safety of the ship and the men would be GD officers responsibility . All the District Commanders ( COMDIS ) and Commander of Coast Guard Region ( COMCG ) appointments are exercised by a GD Officer of the Indian Coast Guard . GD officers are graduates in Science or Engineering . Pilot Officers . Pilot officers are also part of GD branch . A Pilot officer gets an opportunity to work at shore Air Stations along the Indian coasts and also embark ships . ICG operates fixed wing aircraft for surveillance of the exclusive economic zone . In addition , helicopters are embarked on Coast Guard Offshore Patrol Vessels ( OPV ) to provide local surveillance and perform search and rescue mission at sea . Pilot officers are graduates in Science or Engineering . Technical Officers . Technical officers are responsible for operation of advanced technology and sensor systems on board Coast Guard vessels and aircraft , as well as on shore installations . They also command the maintenance wings of the force . Technical officers are graduates in Engineering . Law Officers . Law officers act as legal advisers to their respective commanders . They represent the Indian Coast Guard in legal actions filed by or against the organisation . They also perform the duties of Trial law officers in Coast Guard Courts , convened to try delinquent Coast Guard personnel . Enrolled Personnel . Enrolled personnel in the Coast Guard serve as either a Yantrik ( Technician ) or Navik ( Sailor ) . " Yantrik " s are responsible for operating and maintaining mechanical , electrical or aeronautical equipment and systems on board the Coast Guard vessels and aircraft . " Navik " s may further serve in the General Duty or Domestic branches . The General Duty " Navik " s serve as sailors , weapons systems operators , communication specialists , divers , etc . or in specific maritime or aviation support roles . Domestic branch " Navik " s serve in roles such as stewards , cooks , etc . on board Coast Guard vessels . All personnel are trained in operation of weapons systems in cases of emergency . Training . Currently , Officers of Indian Coast Guard undergo Basic Military Training at the Indian Naval Academy , Ezhimala along with their counter parts of Indian Navy . This helps in the mutual interchange of Officers among these two sister services . While the Indian Coast Guard Academy is under construction in Azhikkal , Kannur district , Kerala . The Sailors of Indian Coast Guard gets trained along with Indian Naval Sailors at the Indian Naval training establishment INS Chilka . All the training undertaken by Indian Coast Guard Officers and Sailors are the same as those under taken by Indian Naval Officers and Sailors . Organization . The Indian Coast Guard organization is headed by the Director General ( DG ICG ) who is located at Coast Guard Headquarters ( CGHQ ) , New Delhi . At CGHQ , he is assisted by four Deputy Director Generals of the rank of Inspector General , and other senior officers heading various staff divisions . The current Director General of Indian Coast Guard ( DG ICG ) is Vice Admiral Anurag G Thapliyal , AVSM . . Indian Coast Guard has recently got its first three - star rank officer Additional Director General Rajendra Singh , PTM , TM , who has the distinction of being the first regular direct entry officer of the Indian Coast Guard to be promoted to the rank of ADG on 11 Jan 2013 . Additional Director General of Indian Coast Guard is equivalent to Vice Admiral of Indian Navy . The ICG as of now is headed by a naval officer of the rank of Vice Admiral on deputation to the Coast Guard as a direct entry Coast Guard Officer is yet to reach the age / service to become equivalent to Vice Admiral as it is the youngest of all the all Armed Forces started in the 70 ' s . Two of the Director Generals ( the 12th and 16th ) , Rameshwar Singh and Prabhakaran Paleri , were career Coast Guard officers , in the sense that they were Indian Navy officers on permanent secondment to the Indian Coast Guard . DG Rameshwar Singh had spent twenty years in the Indian Navy , before he was seconded permanently to the Indian Coast Guard . His tenure lasted for six months , between March 2001 , and September 2001 . Dr . Prabhakaran Paleri was commissioned in the Indian Navy in 1969 , and permanently seconded to the Coast Guard in 1981 . His tenure lasted for five months , from February 2006 to August 2006 . The Indian Coast Guard operates five Regions . Each Region is headed by an Officer of the rank of Inspector General . Each of the regions is further divided into multiple districts , typically covering a coastal state or a union territory . Establishments . By the end of 2012 , the Indian Coast Guard is on track to operate : Equipment . Surface vessels . Ships belonging to the Indian Coast Guard are prefixed ICGS , abbreviation for " Indian Coast Guard Ship " . Aircraft inventory . The Coast Guard operates a fleet of 38 Dornier Do 228 maritime surveillance aircraft , 9 HAL Dhruv and 18 HAL Chetak utility helicopters .