Admiral Jal Cursetji, PVSM (20 May 1919 – 29 January 1991) was a former Flag Officer in the Indian Navy.

Cursetji subsequently commanded the 11th destroyer squadron and the lead ship INS Rajput (D141) and served for about four years as the Naval attaché at the Embassy of India, Washington, D.C., from 1961 to 1965.

During his tenure as the CNS, the maritime reconnaissance role was taken over by the Navy, the Indian Coast Guard came into being and the Goa Naval area was established.

Cursetji was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 1971 and was the first recipient from the Indian Navy of the Legion of Merit.

In late 1938, after the end of his training, he was promoted to the rank of midshipman and posted to HMS Foxhound (H69), a part of the 8th Destroyer Flotilla.

In late 1939, he was transferred to the County-class cruiser HMS Suffolk (55), which was a part of the Northern Patrol.

In April 1940, the ship arrived at Tórshavn to commence the British pre-emptive occupation of the Faroe Islands and she sank the German tanker Skagerrak northwest of Bodø, Norway.

The operation had little effect and the retaliation from German bombers severely damaged the aft of the ship, forcing her to return to Scapa Flow.

After spending about a year, he returned in early 1950 and submitted his report to Naval HQ.

On 1 Jun 1954, MSI was relocated to Dehradun, its present location, and was renamed Naval Hydrographic Office.

The appointment of Surveyor-in-Charge Marine Survey of India was re-designated Chief Hydrographer of the Navy.

[19] He simultaneously held the office of Naval adviser to the High Commissioner of India to Canada in Ottawa.

After returning to India, he was appointed CAPBRAX (captain naval barracks) and Commanding Officer of INS Angre.

Cursetji was promoted to the acting rank of rear admiral and took over as the Chief of Personnel (COP) at Naval Headquarters.

[23][24] On 26 January 1971, he was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service of the highest order.

[25] In August 1972, he led a delegation to the Soviet Union to negotiate the acquisition of ship and aircraft.

[26] In January 1976, the Government of India announced that Cursetji would be the next Chief of the Naval Staff.

[30] Vice Admiral V. A. Kamath was selected as the founding Director General of the Indian Coast Guard.

[39] The Western Naval Command held a talk to observe the birth centenary of Cursetji in 2019.