Sagar Kavach – Securing India’s Coastal Borders

India’s Sagar Kavach Coastal Security Exercise

India has a vast coastline spanning over 7,500 km across multiple states and union territories. Securing this extensive maritime boundary from a range of threats and illegal activities is a massive challenge. To enhance coastal security and preparedness, the Indian Navy conducts an annual coastal security exercise called ‘Sagar Kavach.

Sagar Kavach

Sagar Kavach is a large-scale coastal security exercise conducted along India’s eastern coast. It involves coordination between multiple agencies like the Indian Navy, Coast Guard, marine police, customs, port authorities and other stakeholders. The recent iteration, Sagar Kavach 02/23, was organized in October 2023 across Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry.

The Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Naval Command oversees these drills. He also serves as the Commander-in-Chief of coastal defence operations in the region. The aim is to assess the preparedness and synergies between various coastal security forces to address potential asymmetric threats from the sea.

Sagar Kavach: Indian Navy’s Coastal Security Drill
SectionsDetails
Introduction
  • Sagar Kavach: Indian Navy’s annual coastal security drill
  • Aims to protect 7500 km coastline from potential dangers
About Sagar Kavach
  • Takes place on the East Coast, overseen by Eastern Naval Command
  • Collaboration between forces such as Navy, Coast Guard, and Marine Police
Objectives
  • Gauge readiness and collaboration
  • Examine response strategies
  • Augment surveillance abilities
  • Detect and rectify security lapses
Participating Agencies
  • Indian Navy
  • Coast Guard
  • Marine Police
  • Other entities like Customs and Port Authorities
Conduct
  • Consists of preparatory, surveillance, response, and review stages
  • Assesses alertness against mock threats
Locations
  • Coverage: Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Puducherry coastlines
  • Commanded from a control hub in Visakhapatnam
Significance
  • Fosters inter-agency collaboration
  • Elevates response capabilities
  • Acts as a deterrent to malicious intentions
  • Reinforces the framework of coastal defense.

Objectives of the Exercise

The exercise enables evaluation of the coastal security apparatus along various parameters:

  • Preparedness: The readiness of naval ships, surveillance aircraft and various forces to respond to contingencies.
  • Coordination: Seamless communication and synchronization between the Indian Navy, Coast Guard, marine police and other agencies.
  • Response Mechanisms: The protocols and execution of response plans when faced with security threats from the sea.
  • Surveillance Capabilities: Monitoring the coastline using ships, aircraft, radars, cameras and other technologies.
  • Addressing Security Gaps: Identifying weaknesses in coastal security and adopting suitable corrective measures.

Participating Forces and Agencies

Sagar Kavach involves the participation of over 2500 personnel from various specialized agencies:

  • Indian Navy: Deploys naval ships, surveillance aircraft and helicopters. Establishes control centers to coordinate operations.
  • Indian Coast Guard: Deploys interceptor ships, boats and aircraft. Assists in patrol, surveillance and response.
  • Marine Police: State police units specialized in coastal security, conduct shoreline patrolling.
  • Customs Department: Monitors border checkposts and ports for smuggling activities.
  • Port Authorities: Manage security and emergency response within ports.
  • Forest Department: Monitor coastal forests and activities for any suspicious movements.
  • Other agencies: Fisheries department, intelligence bureau, pollution control board etc.

Conduct of the Exercise

Sagar Kavach 02/23 was conducted in multiple phases:

Preparatory Phase

  • Intelligence gathering about potential threats.
  • Deployment of naval ships, coast guard assets.
  • Establishing control centers and communication links.

Surveillance Phase

  • Extensive aerial surveillance by Dornier aircraft, helicopters and UAVs.
  • Patrolling of shoreline and territorial waters.
  • Monitoring fishing vessels through radars.

Contingency Response Phase

  • Simulating threats like intrusions, attacks, natural disasters etc.
  • Responding per standard operating procedures and contingency plans.
  • Coordination between Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Police.

Review Phase

  • Analyzing the gaps, weaknesses and areas of improvement.
  • Discussing enhancement of surveillance systems.
  • Improving synergy between stakeholder agencies.

Key Locations

The Sagar Kavach exercise spans across India’s eastern coastline covering:

  • Tamil Nadu: Coromandel Coast, Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar.
  • Andhra Pradesh: Machilipatnam, Kakinada and Visakhapatnam.
  • Puducherry: Overseen by Yanam Naval Detachment.

The massive drill is monitored and coordinated from the Navy’s Joint Operations Center at Visakhapatnam, which serves as the nerve center for all coastal security operations.

Significance and Impact

The Sagar Kavach exercise provides invaluable practical experience to enhance coastal security. Some of its key benefits include:

  • Preparedness: Tests preparedness of agencies against real-world contingencies. Helps overcome complacency.
  • Coordination: Builds relationships and fosters information exchange between stakeholders. Facilitates smooth coordination.
  • Capacity Building: Develops capacity and specialized skills like maritime search-and-rescue, pollution response etc.
  • Addressing Gaps: Helps identify vulnerable areas and infrastructure/technology gaps. Enables corrections.
  • Deterrence: The visible mobilization acts as a deterrence against nefarious designs of anti-national elements.

The Way Forward

As India aims to emerge as a maritime power, coastal security is integral to protecting its national interests and territorial sovereignty. Exercises like Sagar Kavach must be conducted with greater frequency while continuously improving their scope and complexity. Equipping coastal security forces with advanced assets and technologies is also essential. The recommendations from each edition can be used to strengthen policies, protocols and infrastructure. Inter-agency coordination must also be enhanced through joint exercises, liaison exchanges, and other mechanisms for closer synergy. India’s long coastline is a strategic asset that must be fully secured to enable the country’s prosperity.

FAQ

What is Sagar Kavach exercise?

Sagar Kavach is an annual coastal security exercise conducted by the Indian Navy along with other maritime security agencies. It aims to evaluate the preparedness and coordination between various coastal security stakeholders in order to address potential asymmetric threats originating from the sea.

Which states are involved in Sagar Kavach exercise between?

The recent iteration of the Sagar Kavach exercise, Sagar Kavach 02/23, was conducted along the eastern coast of India in the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and the union territory of Puducherry.

Who has conducted the Western security Exercise Sagar Kavach?

The Sagar Kavach annual coastal security exercise is organized by the Indian Navy. The recent Sagar Kavach 02/23 edition was executed under the supervision of the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command. He also holds the position of Commander-in-Chief, Coastal Defence (East) and is responsible for India’s eastern seaboard.

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