India, Oct. 4 -- The ministry of defence has appointed vice admiral Rahul Vilas Gokhale as chief of staff of western naval command, and took charge on October 1. His predecessor vice admiral Ajay Kocchar has been posted to Andaman and Nicobar.

Gokhale, a specialist in navigation and direction, is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, Pune, along with the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington, the Naval War College in Goa, and the Australian Defence College in Canberra.

In the past, he has been appointed as the executive officer of INS Kora, an Indian Navy ship which carries guided missiles. Gokhale has been the commanding officer of several ships, and the fleet operations officer of the eastern fleet.

Gokhale ...