Parrikar gets glimpse of Navy’s operational capability on western seaboard

Team herald

PANJIM: The Defence Minister Shri Manohar Parrikar today said the Indian Navy must remain a superior force in the Indian Ocean region and the government will give all support to the Navy so that it becomes a truly Blue Water Navy. 

Addressing the sailors and officers of the INS Vikramaditya after witnessing the two-day of Theatre Readiness Operational Level Exercise (TROPEX­2015), off the coast of Goa in the Arabian Sea, Parrikar said his stay on board INS Vikramaditya has helped him understand many a difficult situations that the defence forces especially sailors and officers of the Indian Navy face while ensuring the safety and security of the nation. TROPEX provides the Navy a valuable opportunity to validate its concept of operations and integration of new acquisitions with the fleet. 

Parrikar was accompanied by the Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh, the Chief Minister of Goa, Laxmikant Parsekar, the Chief Naval Staff, Admiral RK Dhowan and Flag Officer Commanding­in­Chief, Western Naval Command Vice Admiral AK Chopra. 

The two completely networked fleets of the Indian Navy­ the Eastern and the Western­ were kept widely dispersed across seas in the Indian Ocean, operating in a dense electronic environment to match their professional and technical proficiency. All the operations were facilitated by a robust and seamless communication network, including satellite communications under the Navy’s overall thrust on Network Centric Operations, aligned with the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘Digital India.’ 

Parrikar also released a postage stamp commemorating the indigenous Naval communication satellite Rukmani, which is a dedicated Naval satellite, taking the Navy to the step in achieving complete digitisation of communications. The stamp release which took place on board the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya was relayed live to naval units at sea, as well as to Maritime Operations Centres ashore. 

Rukmani has been pivotal in ensuring seamless connectivity between the triad of surface, sub­surface and air platforms of the Navy. 

New weapons, sensors, communication systems and tactics were being tested and tried to optimize the net combat power of the fleets. Over forty surface combatants of various classes including the two aircraft carriers (Vikramaditya and Viraat), submarines including the INS Chakra, a large number of aircraft and UAVs are participating in the exercise. As would be the case in any operation of the twenty first century, the exercise had a jointmanship element of IAF with participation by aircraft such as Sukhois, Mirages and Jaguars. 

In addition to operational activities, various in­house innovations and efforts towards increased indigenisation were also presented to the RM, which helped showcase the Navy’s efforts towards self­reliance. 

TROPEX 2015 will continue over the next few days and the successful missile launches and interceptions, uninterrupted seamless operations in a networked condition with BVR interceptions herald the emergence of a capable and potent ‘future ready’ Indian Navy.