- Thursday, April 25, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIAN Navy chief Admiral R Hari Kumar on Friday (3) said the country’s maritime force keeps a close watch on China’s naval activities in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and it is fully capable of defending the national interests.
Speaking at the annual Navy Day press conference in New Delhi, Hari Kumar, who recently took over, said during the peak of the border tensions between India and China in 2020, the Indian Navy had deployed its warships in a few forward locations and were keeping an eye on Chinese warships that were operating along India’s maritime borders.
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“We are aware of the development of the Chinese Navy. They built around 110 warships in the last few years meaning 13-14 warships every year. Our plans factor all these activities and deployments in the Indian Ocean Region. PLA Navy has been present in the IOR since 2008 and we have been watching that. I want to assure you that the Indian navy is confident of defending India’s maritime interests,” Hari Kumar said.
The navy chief also said the Chinese side has been deploying seven to eight warships in the IOR which is kept under “constant surveillance by aircraft and ships and their activities are kept under close watch”.
Hari Kumar appreciated the Indian government’s setting up the department of military affairs saying it was the biggest reform that has happened in the Indian military since Independence along with the creation of the post of chief of defence staff.
“This enables faster decision making, integration and fewer layers of bureaucracy. I feel DMA made a significant change in the way armed forces operate at headquarters’ level,” he said.
The navy chief said Chinese aggression on the northern borders and the Covid-19 pandemic have created complex security challenges but the navy has maintained its combat and mission readiness and prevented any misadventure in the maritime domain.
(With ANI inputs)
