UPSC Prelims 2024·GS1·polity-and-governance·social justice and international relations

Which of the following is/are correctly matched in terms of equivalent rank in the three services of Indian Defence forces? (Army — Airforce — Navy) 1. Brigadier — Air Commodore — Commodore 2. Major General — Air Vice Marshal — Vice Admiral 3. Major — Squadron Leader — Lieutenant Commander 4. Lieutenant Colonel — Group Captain — Captain Select the correct answer using the code given below:

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Last updated 23 May 2026, 3:31 pm IST
  1. A1 and 4
  2. B1 and 3
  3. C2, 3 and 4
  4. D3 onlyCorrect

Explanation

Let's check the equivalent ranks in the Indian Armed Forces: **Officers Ranks (Senior to Junior): | Army | Air Force | Navy | | :---------------- | :------------------- | :------------------- | | General | Air Chief Marshal | Admiral | | Lieutenant General| Air Marshal | Vice Admiral | | Major General | Air Vice Marshal | Rear Admiral | | Brigadier | Air Commodore | Commodore | | Colonel | Group Captain | Captain | | Lieutenant Colonel| Wing Commander | Commander | | Major | Squadron Leader | Lieutenant Commander | | Captain | Flight Lieutenant | Lieutenant | | Lieutenant | Flying Officer | Sub Lieutenant | Now let's evaluate the given pairs: 1. **Brigadier (Army) : Air Commodore (Airforce) : Commander (Navy):** Incorrect. While Brigadier and Air Commodore are equivalent, 'Commander' in Navy is equivalent to 'Lieutenant Colonel' in Army and 'Wing Commander' in Airforce. The Navy equivalent to Brigadier/Air Commodore is 'Commodore'. So, this is incorrect. 2. **Major General (Army) : Air Vice Marshal (Airforce) : Vice Admiral (Navy):** Incorrect. While Major General and Air Vice Marshal are equivalent, 'Vice Admiral' in Navy is equivalent to 'Lieutenant General' in Army and 'Air Marshal' in Airforce. The Navy equivalent to Major General/Air Vice Marshal is 'Rear Admiral'. So, this is incorrect. 3. **Major (Army) : Squadron Leader (Airforce) : Lieutenant Commander (Navy):** Correct. These three ranks are indeed equivalent across the services. 4. **Lieutenant Colonel (Army) : Group Captain (Airforce) : Captain (Navy):** Incorrect. While Lieutenant Colonel and Wing Commander (Airforce) are equivalent, and Captain (Navy) and Colonel (Army) are equivalent. The correct set here would be Lieutenant Colonel - Wing Commander - Commander. Group Captain is equivalent to Colonel, and Captain (Navy) is equivalent to Colonel. So, this is incorrect. Therefore, only one pair (3) is correctly matched.
polity-and-governance: Which of the following is/are correctly matched in terms of equivalent rank in the three services of Indian Defence forc

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