Govt accepts vice-admiral's plea for early retirement

The government on Monday accepted Western Naval Command chief vice-admiral Shekhar Sinha's plea for voluntary retirement. Sinha had on Thursday sought early retirement, hours after admiral Robin Dhowan took over as the new navy chief.

The government on Monday accepted Western Naval Command chief vice-admiral Shekhar Sinha's plea for voluntary retirement.

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Sinha had on Thursday sought early retirement, hours after admiral Robin Dhowan took over as the new navy chief.

Sinha had sought early retirement as he had been passed over for the top navy job. He is six months senior to Admiral Dhowan, who was commissioned in on January 1, 1975.

However, in spite of being the senior-most, Sinha was superseded by the government since some of the worst naval accidents occurred under his watch, including the sinking of INS Sindhurakshak that killed 18 sailors on August 14, 2013 and the INS Sindhuratna mishap that killed two officers on February 26, 2014.

Sinha, who is a naval aviator, was due to retire on August 31, 2014. A navigation and direction specialist, Dhowan will serve as the chief till May 31, 2016.