Two-front war in mind, Indian Navy carries out mega war game in Arabian Sea

The two-month-long exercise has been concluded and the Navy will now undertake ‘extensive debriefings’ to identify key takeaways of the exercise and formulate measures to further strengthen contingency plans, the defence ministry said on Monday.

The Indian Navy has carried out a major review of its operational capabilities during a two-month mega war game in the Arabian Sea in which all its frontline warships, submarines and aircraft were deployed.

The two-month-long exercise saw participation of all the operational ships, submarines and aircraft of the Indian Navy along with men and equipment of the Indian Army, all types of aircraft of the Indian Air Force and ships and aircraft of the Coast Guard. (Representational Photo)

“This review included both, peacetime operations as well as the training and preparations for war,” the Navy said in a statement.

The war game was conducted on both the seaboards of India extending from the northern Arabian sea off the coast of Gujarat to the southern Indian ocean off the Sunda Straits near Indonesia.

The Navy said the war game was the first of its kind to be conducted on both seaboards which is indicative of the Navy’s threat perceptions of a two-front war.

The exercise on the eastern seaboard was codenamed ‘ENCORE (Eastern Naval Command Operational Readiness Exercise) ‘ ,while on the Western seaboard its codename was ‘Paschim Lehar’.

“In preparation for conflict, the Navy revamped its operational exercise plans to make them more contemporary and realistic. In a two-year cycle promulgated by Naval headquarters, the Indian Navy has literally ‘cut the flab’ in the various exercises undertaken at sea,” the Navy said.

“The focus has been on realistic scenarios likely to manifest in the future including terrorist attacks from sea on critical infrastructure and populated areas, defence of the offshore oil resources of the country and protection of the large seaborne trade of India,” it said.