Rear Admiral Shantanu Jha has assumed command of Maharashtra Naval Area (MNA) from Rear Admiral Anil Jaggi on Saturday.
Before his current appointment, he was the Chief Staff Officer (Operations), Eastern Naval Command.
Rear Admiral Jha was commissioned into the Indian Navy on July 1, 1993. A graduate of the National Defence Academy, he is a specialist in navigation and direction.
A graduate of the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, and the Royal College of Defence Studies, London, he holds Master's degrees in Defence Studies from Madras University and in International Security and Strategy from King's College, London.
Rear Admiral Jha has navigated six frontline frigates and destroyers, as well as the aircraft carrier, INS Viraat. He has also served as the Executive Officer of the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
His sea commands have included the command of IN ships Nishank, Kora, and Sahyadri.
According a statement from the Indian Navy, his staff tenures include serving as Joint Director (Personnel), Naval Assistant to Vice Chief of the Naval Staff, Commodore (Foreign Cooperation), and Commodore (Strategy, Concepts & Transformation) at NHQ New Delhi. He has also served as India's Naval Attache at the Embassy of India at Tehran, Iran.
Rear Admiral Jha is a recipient of the Nao Sena Medal. He has also been commended by the Chief of the Naval Staff and the Commander-in-Chief on four occasions.
