Vice Admiral Nilakanta Krishnan, PVSM, DSC (8 June 1919 – 30 January 1982), was a former flag officer in the Indian Navy.

During the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran in August 1941, Krishnan boarded and captured an Iranian gunboat after a firefight.

He subsequently attended the Joint Services Staff College, Latimer and appointed Deputy Naval Advisor at High Commission of India in London.

Krishnan subsequently served as the Director of Personnel Services at NHQ and Deputy Secretary (Military Wing) in the Cabinet Secretariat.

After attending the Imperial Defence College in 1965, he took over as the Naval advisor to the High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom.

Promoted to flag rank in 1967, Krishnan was appointed the second Vice Chief of the Naval Staff.

He is believed to have tricked the Pakistani submarine PNS Ghazi, which was on a search and destroy mission, into entering Visakhapatnam; where it was eliminated.

The third of five brothers was Dr Nilakanta Sitaraman, a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and a prominent doctor in their hometown Nagercoil and the neighboring area.

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

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.

[10] Krishnan was promoted to the rank of Acting Sub-Lieutenant in the Royal Indian Navy on 1 September 1940 and underwent training at Portsmouth.

(HMIS Investigator) led a boarding party to capture an enemy ship, the crew of which offered stout resistance.

Krishnan himself was engaged in a personal duel with the Captain of the enemy ship and proved himself to be the better shot.

After killing him and seriously wounding two officers and four men, he captured the ship undamaged with twenty prisoners.Krishnan was promoted to the rank of lieutenant on 16 August 1941.

[20] In late 1942, Krishnan was posted as an instructor at HMIS Bahadur, the Boys' training establishment at Karachi.

[21] In December, after his return from the United Kingdom, he was posted to the Emerald-class cruiser HMS Emerald, which was a part of the Eastern Fleet.

[23] After a short stint, he returned to India and given command of the Motor Launch ML 420 as an escort to two Landing Ship, Tanks (LST).

[24] After establishing a communication centre at Porbandar,[25] Krishnan was appointed Naval Liaison Officer to the Commander of the Kathiawar Defence Force (KDF), Brigadier Gurdial Singh.

[26] In late-1947, Krishnan was promoted to the acting rank of Lieutenant Commander and appointed Senior Officer Reserve Fleet (SORF).

A few months later, he was handpicked by the chief of staff to the Commander-in-Chief, Royal Indian Navy Commodore Martin Henry St. Leger Nott to join the Plans and Intelligence directorate at Naval HQ.

[35] On 15 July 1955, Krishnan was appointed Director of Personnel Services at Naval HQ, with the acting rank of Captain.

[40] On 18 March 1958, he was promoted to Commodore 2nd Class while still serving as Deputy Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat.

[41] On 23 December 1958, Krishnan reverted to his permanent rank of captain and took over as the Commanding Officer of the Leander-class cruiser INS Delhi.

The ship was to participate in the Annexation of Goa providing distant support to the Indian Army units storming Diu.

[52] On 12 December 1967, Krishnan was appointed Vice Chief of the Naval Staff (VCNS) with the acting rank of Rear Admiral (paid from 18 February 1968).

[56] On 26 January 1970, Krishnan was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service of the most exceptional order.

"[62] His TT Pistol is still placed in a covered glass display at the Indian Military Academy's Museum.

[61] For his leadership of the Eastern Naval Command, Krishnan was awarded the Padma Bhushan in January 1972.

[65] The two-year extension was given to enable Krishnan to be in the running for the post of Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) when Admiral Sourendra Nath Kohli retired.