Arun Auditto

Rear Admiral Arun Auditto, AVSM, NM was a Flag Officer in the Indian Navy.

He was decorated with a gallantry award during the Liberation of Goa.

Auditto was commissioned into the Indian Navy in 1955.

After training on the Tir, he spent his early years on board the Ton-class minesweeper INS Cannanore and the Hunt-class destroyer INS Godavari.

He chose to specialise in Torpedo and anti-submarine warfare (TAS) and was selected to attend the Long course at the TAS school in Cochin.

In early November 1961, while he was undergoing the course, he was selected to command a landing party and was posted to the Gunnery school.

The landing party was platoon-sized and consisted of recently graduated seaman gunners who were being trained in small arms and short gunnery.

It also had a demolition section who were trained on underwater weapons.

The platoon, led by Auditto, was intensively trained over the month.

On 16 December, the platoon embarked on INS Trishul, commanded by Captain K. L. Kulkarni.

The landing party was to assault and capture Anjadip Island and Auditto discussed the plan with Captain Kulkarni and the Task Force Commander - the Flag Officer Commanding Indian Fleet Rear Admiral B.S. Soman.

On 18 December, the day of the landing, they received intelligence that the Portuguese garrison had surrendered and that no resistance was expected.

The 75 men of the platoon were launched in two boats in broad daylight.

The first wave was commanded by Auditto and the next by his second-in-command Senior Commissioned Gunner Noel Kelman.

The first boat landed on the beach without resistance but the second boat was met with machine gun fire.

The wounded were sent back to Trishul and the platoon captured the Island and took over the prisoners of war.

Auditto and Kelman were both wounded in the operation.

Auditto was decorated with the Nao Sena Medal for gallantry.

The citation for the Nao Sena Medal reads as follows:

In 1962, the Government of India approved the proposal of building the submarine arm and the first officers were selected for training.

A large number of officers and sailors volunteered to join the submarine arm.

In February 1962, Auditto was one of four officers selected to attend HMS Dolphin, the home of the Royal Navy Submarine Service.

After completing the year-long course, Auditto returned to India and was appointed TAS officer of the Blackwood-class frigate INS Khukri.

He was subsequently posted as an instructor to the TAS school in Cochin.

In September 1965, India signed an agreement to acquire four submarines and a Submarine tender among other ships.

INS Kalvari was the first submarine to be inducted into the Indian Navy in December 1967.

Auditto underwent training in Russian language and oversaw training of the crew of the second submarine INS Khanderi.

He was appointed the commissioning executive officer of Khanderi, commanded by Commander M. N. Vasudeva.

Khanderi sailed from Riga and reached India after rounding the Cape of Good Hope.

In December 1969, the fourth submarine was to be commissioned in Riga.

Auditto was promoted to the rank of Commander and appointed the commissioning commanding officer of INS Kursura.

Kursura was commissioned on 18 December 1969 and embarked on her maiden voyage from Balrisk on 20 February 1970.

A pioneer submariner in the Indian Navy, he was the commissioning Commanding Officer of the Kalvari-class submarine INS Kursura, which he commanded during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.

He later commanded the submarine base INS Virbahu and the Whitby-class frigate INS Trishul.

After promotion to flag rank, he served as the Fortress Commander, Andaman and Nicobar Islands (FORTAN) and as the first Flag Officer Submarines, before retiring in 1988.

Auditto was born in Allahabad to Gyan Chander, a college lecturer.

He completed his schooling in Allahabad, attending the Boys' High School & College.

He then attended the Ewing Christian College for a year before getting selected to attend the Joint Services Wing (JSW), Dehradun.

While at the JSW, he chose to join the Indian Navy.

After graduating from JSW, he trained on board the training ship INS Tir.