Junior commissioned officer

Template:Short description 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. Senior havildars are promoted to JCO rank on the basis of merit and seniority, restricted by the number of vacancies. 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.

History

The JCO evolved from the native commissioned officers of the Presidency armies, who held commissions from the Governor General. The native commissioned officers developed into the viceroy's commissioned officers (VCOs), established in the British Indian Army during the British Raj in 1885. 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). By the time of independence in 1947, there were many Indian (and Pakistani) officers who had graduated from Sandhurst or the Indian Military Academy. In 1945 the Willcox Committee Report recommended that VCOs be phased out, though this never occurred.

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. After the secession of East Pakistan in 1971, the Bangladesh Army inherited the JCO rank system from the Pakistan Army.

Bangladesh

Rank group	Junior commissioned officers
Template:Army	File:Bangladesh-army-WO-3.svg	File:Bangladesh-army-WO-2.svg	File:Bangladesh-army-WO-1.svg
Template:Naval	File:Bangladesh-Navy-OR-9.svg	File:04.BNF-MCPO.svg	File:03.BNF-CPO.svg
Template:Air force	File:08.BAF-CWO.svg	File:07.BAF-SWO.svg	File:06.BAF-WO.svg
Rank group	Junior commissioned officers

Paramilitary forces

Rank group	Junior commissioned officers
Template:Flagicon image Bangladesh Coast Guard	File:Bangladesh-Navy-OR-9.svg	File:04.BNF-MCPO.svg	File:03.BNF-CPO.svg
Template:Flagicon image Border Guard Bangladesh	File:Subeder Major of BGB.jpg	File:Subedar of BGB.jpg	File:Naib Subedar of BGB.jpg
	Subedar Major	Subedar	Naib Subedar
Rank group	Junior commissioned officers

India

The pay scale for Indian Naib Subedar, Subedar and Subedar major rank is pay levels 6, 7 and 8 (Respectively)

Rank group	Junior commissioned officers
Template:Army	File:Subedar Major - Risaldar Major of the Indian Army.svg	File:Subedar - Risaldar of the Indian Army.svg	File:Naib Subedar - Naib Risaldar of the Indian Army.svg
Infantry ranks	Subedar Major	Subedar	Naib Subedar
Cavalry ranks	Risaldar Major	Risaldar	Naib Risaldar
Template:Naval	File:India-Navy-OR-9.svg	File:India-Navy-OR-8.svg	File:India-Navy-OR-7.svg
	Master chief petty officer 1st class	Master chief petty officer 2nd class	Chief petty officer
Technical Ranks	Master chief engine room artificer 1st class (MCERA I)	Master chief engine room artificer 2nd class (MCERA II)	Chief engine room artificer III (ERA III)
Template:Air force	File:Indian IAF OR-9.svg	File:Indian IAF OR-8.svg	File:Indian IAF OR-7.svg
	Master warrant officer	Warrant officer	Junior warrant officer
Template:Flagicon image Indian Border Roads Organisation	File:Border Roads Organisation OR-9.png	File:Border Roads Organisation OR-8.png	File:Border Roads Organisation OR-7b.png	File:Border Roads Organisation OR-7a.png
	Senior Hindi translator	Junior engineer/Senior supervisor/Superintendent	Assistant superintendent	Supervisor
Rank group	Junior commissioned officers

Auxiliary forces

Rank group	Junior commissioned officers
Template:Coast guard	File:Indian Coast Guard OR-9.svg	File:Indian Coast Guard OR-8.svg		File:India-Navy-OR-7.svg
	Pradhan Adhikari Pradhan Sahayak Engineer	Uttam Adhikari Uttam Sahayak Engineer		Adhikari Sahayak Engineer
Template:Flagicon image Assam Rifles	File:Assam Rifles OR-9.svg	File:Assam Rifles OR-8.svg		File:Assam Rifles OR-7.svg
	Subedar major	Subedar		Naib subedar
Template:Flagicon image Border Security Force	File:Central Armed Police Forces Subedar Major.png	File:Police Inspector insignia.png	File:Police Sub-Inspector.png	File:Assistant Sub-Inspector.png
	Subedar major	Inspector	Sub-inspector	Assistant sub-inspector
Template:Flagicon image Central Industrial Security Force		File:Police Inspector insignia.png	File:Police Sub-Inspector.png	File:Assistant Sub-Inspector.png
		Inspector	Sub inspector	Assistant sub-inspector
Template:Flagicon image Central Reserve Police Force	File:CRP OR-9.svg	File:CRP OR-8b.svg	File:CRP OR-8a.svg	File:CRP OR-7.svg
	Subedar major	Inspector	Sub-inspector	Assistant sub-inspector
Template:Flagicon image Indo-Tibetan Border Police	File:ITBP OR-9.png	File:ITBP OR-8b.png	File:ITBP OR-8a.png
	Subedar major	Subedar/Inspector /	Sub inspector
Template:Flagicon image National Security Guard	File:NSG OR-9.svg	File:NSG OR-8b.svg	File:NSG OR-8a.svg	File:NSG OR-7.svg
	Subedar major	Assistant commander-1	Assistant commander-2	Assistant commander-3
File:Logo of RPF.jpg Railway Protection Force		File:Police Inspector insignia.png	File:Police Sub-Inspector.png	File:Assistant Sub-Inspector.png
		Inspector	Sub inspector	Assistant sub-inspector
Template:Flagicon image Sashastra Seema Bal	File:Central Armed Police Forces Subedar Major.png	File:Police Inspector insignia.png	File:Police Sub-Inspector.png	File:Assistant Sub-Inspector.png
	Subedar major	Inspector	Sub inspector	Assistant sub-inspector
File:SFF LOGO.svg Special Frontier Force
	Subedar Major	Subedar		Naib Subedar
Rank group	Junior commissioned officers

Pakistan

Rank group	Junior commissioned officers
Template:Army	File:10.Pakistan Army-SMCWO.svg	File:09.Pakistan Army-MCWO.svg	File:08.Pakistan Army-CWO.svg
Infantry ranks	Subedar-major	Subedar	Naib subedar
Cavalry ranks	Risaldar major	Risaldar	Naib risaldar
Template:Country data Pakistan	File:10 Pakistan Navy.svg	File:9 Pakistan Navy.svg	File:7 Pakistan Navy.svg
	Master chief petty officer	Fleet chief petty officer	Chief petty officer
Template:Air force	File:PAK-CWO.svg	File:PAK-WO.svg	File:PAK-AWO.svg
	Chief warrant officer	Warrant officer	Assistant warrant officer
Rank group	Junior commissioned officers

Paramilitary forces

Rank group	Junior commissioned officers
Pakistan Rangers	File:Pakistan Rangers Senior Inspector.svg	File:Pakistan Rangers Inspector.svg	File:Pakistan Rangers Sub Inspector.svg
	Senior inspector	Inspector	Sub inspector
Pakistan Frontier Constabulary	File:PFC Subedar Major.png	File:PFC Subedar.png	File:PFC Naib Subedar.png
	Subedar-Major	Subedar	Naib Subedar
Pakistan Frontier Corps		File:09.Pakistan Army-MCWO.svg	File:08.Pakistan Army-CWO.svg	File:Blank.svg
		Subedar	Naib subedar	Head constable
Template:Flagicon image Gilgit−Baltistan Scouts	File:Blank.svg	File:Blank.svg	File:Blank.svg
	Subedar-Major	Subedar	Naib Subedar
Template:Flagicon image Pakistan Coast Guards	File:10.Pakistan Army-SMCWO.svg	File:09.Pakistan Army-MCWO.svg	File:08.Pakistan Army-CWO.svg
	Subedar-Major	Subedar	Naib Subedar
Template:Flagicon image Airports Security Force	File:Blank.svg	File:Blank.svg	File:Blank.svg
	Inspector	Sub-inspector	Assistant sub-inspector
Template:Flagicon image Pakistan Maritime Security Agency	File:10 Pakistan Navy.svg	File:9 Pakistan Navy.svg	File:7 Pakistan Navy.svg
	Master Chief Petty Officer	Fleet Chief Petty Officer	Chief Petty Officer
Rank group	Junior commissioned officers

Honorary commissions

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:

• Honorary Lieutenant
• Honorary Captain

Indian Navy:

• Honorary Sub Lieutenant
• Honorary Lieutenant

Indian Air Force:

• Honorary Flying Officer
• Honorary Flight Lieutenant

Generally, in official documents the JCO rank held by the person is also added before the Honorary Commission rank.