India will base a Dornier maritime patrol aircraft in the Maldives from
Wednesday to carry out surveillance of the Indian Ocean island nation's
exclusive economic zone and also maintain an anti-piracy vigil in its
waters.
The Indian Navy plane will operate from Male and will stay there for three weeks, a navy spokesperson said here Tuesday.
India has been sending a warship or a naval plane to perform security
roles for Maldives in the last two years, with Somali pirates becoming
active close to island nation.
It has also gifted a fast attack craft to the Maldivian maritime
forces. India serviced the craft and returned it to the Maldives.
A Indian Navy ship also carries out hydrography surveys in Maldivian
waters to aid navigation. Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) has also set
up a chain of coastal radars for the island nation, apart from training
its personnel in operating the equipment.
The assistance is provided by India as a goodwill gesture towards its
neighbours in the Indian Ocean Region and is in consonance with what
Defence Minister AK Antony told naval commanders during their conference
last week.
"The Indian Navy has been mandated to be a net security provider to
the island nations in the Indian Ocean Region. We would like to assure
our maritime neighbours about our unstinted support for their security
and economic prosperity," Antony had said.
Similar assistance is provided by India to Mauritius too, with a
speedboat being gifted to the Mauritian maritime force by the Indian
Navy. A coastal radar chain and automated identification system too have
been set up by India in Mauritius for maritime surveillance of the
island nation.
Mauritius has also placed an order for an offshore patrol vessel with
Kolkata-based defence shipyard Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers.
India has also gifted a fast attack craft to the Seychelles. It was
involved in anti-piracy operations in the Indian Ocean a few months ago.
why don't we employ drones?
ReplyDeletehttp://maldivesresortworkers.wordpress.com/2011/09/07/we-could-use-drones-to-search/