Navy to enhance operational capability with commissioning of INS Jatayu at Lakshadweep’s Minicoy Island

Navy to enhance operational capability with commissioning of INS Jatayu at Lakshadweep’s Minicoy Island

New Delhi: The Navy is set to commission naval detachment Minicoy as INS Jatayu on 6 March at the strategically important Lakshadweep Islands. This will help incrementally augment security infrastructure, the Navy said in a press release.

INS Jatayu is the second naval base in Lakshadweep after INS Dweeprakshak in Kavaratti, Kerala. With the commissioning of INS Jatayu, the Navy will extend operational surveillance, reach and sustenance.

Naval detachment Minicoy was set up in early 1980s under the operational command of the naval officer-in-charge (Lakshadweep). Minicoy is the southernmost island of Lakshadweep which straddles the vital Sea Lines of Communications (SLOCs). The importance of the Lakshadweep Islands is that they can be used as a ‘vantage point’ to monitor the movement of different vessels, having varied origins in the Arabian Sea.

Basing of an independent naval unit with requisite infrastructure and resources will enhance the overall operational capability of the Navy in the islands. The base will enhance operational reach and facilitate the Navy’s operational efforts towards anti-piracy and anti-narcotics operations in Western Arabian Sea.

On how this will allow it to be the primary responder in the Indian Ocean region, the Navy in its statement said, “It will augment the Indian Navy’s capability as the first responder in the region and augment connectivity with the mainland.”

Lakshadweep and Minicoy Islands are strategically located in the Arabian Sea. Several shipping lanes pass from near these islands. It was in 2012 that the naval detachment at Kavaratti was commissioned as a naval establishment, INS Dweeprakshak. Furthermore, the Navy had in 2016 set up a naval detachment at Androth Island to strengthen maritime security and stability. According to reports, the Navy had been upgrading infrastructure facilities at naval units located in Kavaratti, Minicoy, Agatti and Androth islands.

Sources in the defence and security establishment told ThePrint that heavy shipping routes are located near these islands. The islands are close to the Strait of Malacca which is considered an economic highway due to its shipping routes. The new base would give the Navy an edge in keeping an eye on the shipping activity and the force would be much better placed to respond during crises. More Navy assets means a greater network to respond.

(Edited by Gitanjali Das)