Naval Commanders' Conference to begin in Mumbai tomorrow

New Delhi, May 6 (UNI) The complex problem of maritime security environment in the Indian Ocean Region, real time exchange of information, operational and acquisition plans of the Indian Navy would be the highlight of the three-day Naval Commanders' Conference, beginning in Mumbai tomorrow.

The conference, being held at the Western Naval Command Headquarters, would be inaugurated by Navy chief Admiral Sureesh Mehta and attended by the highest echelons from the Integrated Headquarters at New Delhi, three command headquarters and two fleets.

The conference is held annually to deliberate upon major operational issues with regard to the defence of the nation's maritime interest, coastal security, defence of national assets at sea, naval strategy, its own operational and acquisition plans and the course corrections required to remain relevant with the times as also to maintain synergy with the other two services.

Over the last decade, the maritime security environment in the Indian Ocean Region has become more complex, fluid and significantly more volatile. Along with the nation's economic success and elevation in the international stature, the nation's regional responsibilities have also increased. To discharge these, a strong and effective navy is essential, an Indian Navy spokesperson said.

In the coming years, the Indian Navy would be called upon to play a significantly larger role so as to be a regionally relevant force and be in a position to not only counter any existing and identifiable threats but also to discharge its responsibilities of maintaining, safeguarding and furthering the nation's maritime interests and disaster relief operations, he added.

''To ensure that the navy remains an operationally focused force, capable of dealing with the challenging environment of the 21st century, surveillance of the seas around us also real time exchange of information through network centric operations assumes greater significance today and these are the primary focus areas of this year's conference,'' the spokesperson said.

Further, some major platforms in all three dimensions of the navy's operation were scheduled for induction and integration of these platforms and weapon systems into the overall concept of operations assumed significance and the naval commanders would deliberate on these issue as well, he added.

UNI AG SY HS1610