Field marshal (India)

Field Marshal
Rank flag of the Field Marshal
Shoulder epaulette
Star insignia of the Field Marshal
Country	India
Service branch	Indian Army
Abbreviation	FM
Rank	Five star
Formation	3 January 1973[1]
Next higher rank	None
Next lower rank	General
Equivalent ranks	Marshal of the Indian Air Force (IAF)

Field Marshal (Hindi: फ़ील्ड मार्शल, romanized: pheeld maarshal) is a five–star officer rank and the highest attainable in the Indian Army. Created in 1973, it exists as an ceremonial recognition, awarded exclusively to officers deemed to have rendered exceptional service during wartime.^[2]

Modeled after British military ranking system, the rank is the Army's equivalent to the Marshal of the Indian Air Force (MIAF) - the only other five-star rank in the Indian Armed Forces.^[2] It presently exists solely for honorary purposes and does not encompass any operational obligations, consequently, it sits outside the Army's operational hierarchy, nevertheless, its rank-holders customarily retain it for life i.e., are considered to be serving officers unto death.^[3]

Since its inception, the rank has been awarded only twice, to S. H. F. J. Manekshaw in January 1973 and second, to K. M. Cariappa in April 1986.^[4] Outside the Army, the only other officer in the armed forces to have ever held a five-star rank was Arjan Singh, who was promoted as Marshal of the Indian Air Force in January 2002.^[5]