ABSTRACT
This chapter explicates the changes in the policies and attitude of the colonial regime, the policy of induction of officer cadre and the entry of Indians, RIN’s new induction of Indian sailors (ratings) and how different it was from the previous ideologies behind recruitments, etc. The sudden outbreak of the war made the British Government realise that the expansion of the RIN was indispensable towards the protection of the Indian coasts, harbours and shipping. Manpower became the most crucial factor in the expansion of the Navy to manage the newly built ships and shore establishments. Prior to the war, the RIN had followed the ‘martial’ theory, but during the peak of the war, when the scarcity of manpower became acute, RIN had to leave the martial theory and to compromise in educational, physical and medical standards of the Indian recruits. The strength of the RIN was doubled between the outbreak of war and 31 December 1939.
