Junior commissioned officer (JCO) is a group of military ranks which is higher than havildar (non-commissioned officer) and lower than lieutenant (commissioned officer). The term is only used by Nepal, Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan.[1] Senior havildars are promoted to JCO rank on the basis of merit and seniority, restricted by the number of vacancies.[2] JCOs are treated as a separate class and hold additional privileges. Primarily the term was associated with armies but since the 2000s India's and Pakistan's navies and air forces are using the term to indicate their chief petty officers and warrant officers.
The Indian Army has recruited Gurkha soldiers from Nepal since the 19th century and separate Gurkha regiments were created for them, the Gurkha soldiers got same ranks as other Indian soldiers; the modern Nepal Army officially used the Indian Army rank system for their soldiers in the 1960s through a series of reorganizations and the JCO term has been used by them from then.[3] After the secession of East Pakistan in 1971, the Bangladesh Army inherited the JCO rank system from the Pakistan Army though since the early 2000s the army has used the warrant officer terms.
The pay scale for Indian Naib Subedar, Subedar and Subedar major rank is pay levels 6, 7 and 8 (Respectively)
The JCO evolved from the viceroy's commissioned officers (VCOs), established in the Indian Army 1 during the British Raj in 1885. The VCOs themselves succeeded the so-called native officers holding a commission from the Governor General.[4] Gurkha regiments in British service had also their set of 'native officers' resp. VCOs, although their homeland Nepal was never a British colony.
Under the British, there was a clear colonial context, with the VCOs being the highest ranks an Indian could attain. The full commissioned officers were British, from the 18th century to the beginning of the 20th century. However, that changed slowly under the principles of Indianisation. In 1905, a special form of a king’s Commission in His Majesty’s Native Land Forces was instituted. Indians who had qualified through the Imperial Cadet Corps would earn a commission that was limited to having authority over Indian troops only. Its holders could not rise above major. From 1917, in the midst of World War I, Indians 'with good family background' became eligible to study at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst and earn a commission as King's Commissioned Indian Officer (KCIO).[5] By the time of independence in 1947, there were many Indian (and Pakistani) officers who had graduated from Sandhurst or the Indian Military Academy.
| Rank group | Junior commissioned officers | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [6] | ||||
| Infantry ranks | Subedar Major | Subedar | Naib Subedar | |
| Cavalry ranks | Risaldar Major Hindi: रिसालदार मेजर | Risaldar Hindi: रिसालदार | Naib Risaldar Hindi: नायब रिसालदार | |
| [7] | ||||
| Master chief petty officer 1st class | Master chief petty officer 2nd class | Chief petty officer | ||
| [8] | ||||
| Master warrant officer | Warrant officer | Junior warrant officer | ||
| Rank group | Junior commissioned officers | |||
| Rank group | Junior commissioned officers | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [9] | ||||
| Infantry ranks | Subedar-major Urdu: صوبیدار میجر | Subedar Urdu: صوبیدار | Naib subedar Urdu: نائب صوبیدار | |
| Cavalry ranks | Risaldar major Urdu: رسالدار میجر | Risaldar Urdu: رسالدار | Naib risaldar Urdu: نائب رسالدار | |
| Master chief petty officer Urdu: ماسٹر چیف پیٹی آفیسر | Fleet chief petty officer Urdu: فلیٹ چیف پیٹی آفیسر | Chief petty officer Urdu: چیف پیٹی آفیسر | ||
| Chief warrant officer | Warrant officer | Assistant warrant officer | ||
| Rank group | Junior commissioned officers | |||
There is also a custom of giving honorary commissions to deserving JCOs. Every year a list of eligible JCOs is drawn up and honorary commissions awarded to them. This could be at the time of retirement, or when still in service. Honorary commissioned officers may wear the appropriate rank insignia, but they do not become members of the officers' mess. They do, however, receive the pay and pension of their honorary rank. The honorary ranks in the various forces are:
Indian Army:
Indian Navy:
Indian Air Force:
Generally, in official documents the JCO rank held by the person is also added before the Honorary Commission rank.