One Year After Launch, MAHASAGAR Takes Shape Through Naval Diplomacy – OpEd |
Over the past year, the Indian Navy has emerged as a central instrument of India’s expanding maritime outreach. Since the launch of the MAHASAGAR — Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions — vision by Narendra Modi in March 2025, naval deployments, exercises and humanitarian missions have increasingly shaped how India engages partners across the Indian Ocean and the wider Global South.
In 2015, PM Narendra Modi, during a visit to Mauritius, launched the SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) vision. While SAGAR focused largely on maritime security and capacity-building in India’s immediate neighbourhood, MAHASAGAR represents a broader strategic framework linking security cooperation, trade and sustainable development across the Indo-Pacific.
The shift reflects the growing importance of sea routes in global commerce. Nearly two-thirds of global trade moves through the Indo-Pacific maritime corridor, while about 90 per cent of India’s trade travels by sea.
Speaking at India Maritime Week 2025 in Mumbai, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that over the past eleven years, Prime Minister Modi has defined India’s maritime sector as a source of national strength, regional stability, and global prosperity.
A major pillar of the MAHASAGAR framework has been naval diplomacy. In April 2025, India launched the first Africa–India Key Maritime Engagement (AIKEYME) exercise in Tanzania. The exercise involved ten African nations and focused on joint patrols and interoperability in the Western Indian Ocean.
India also deployed INS Sunayna under the Indian Ocean Ship (IOS) SAGAR initiative, with a multinational crew drawn from nine partner nations, including Kenya, Seychelles and the Maldives. The mission carried out surveillance in their Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) and conducted training activities.
Beyond the Indian Ocean, India and the European Union conducted their first joint naval exercise from June 1–3, 2025, focusing on counter-piracy operations and tactical manoeuvres.
India has also strengthened institutional frameworks such as the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC). Originally formed in 2011 by India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, the grouping now includes Mauritius and Bangladesh as full members, while Seychelles has become the sixth full member after initially participating as an observer. The organisation operates with a secretariat in Colombo, addressing maritime security, cyber threats and humanitarian response.
Humanitarian assistance has emerged as another important dimension of India’s maritime engagement. In November 2025, after Cyclone Ditwah, the Indian Navy launched Operation Sagar Bandhu. Naval ships, including INS Vikrant, INS Udaygiri and INS Sukanya, delivered over 1,000 tonnes of relief supplies to affected areas. Earlier in March 2025, Operation Brahma responded to a devastating earthquake in Myanmar. The Indian Navy sent five naval ships and six aircraft carrying over 750 tonnes of relief material. India also delivered flood relief to Kenya using INS Sumedha during the 2024–25 floods.
India’s maritime diplomacy has also reached Southeast Asia. During the 22nd ASEAN-India Summit in October 2025, PM Modi declared 2026 the ASEAN-India Year of Maritime Cooperation, deepening engagement across maritime security, the blue economy and humanitarian assistance.
India’s growing maritime role was highlighted during the “Maritime Trifecta” events in Visakhapatnam in February 2026. These included MILAN 2026, which brought together 42 ships, 29 aircraft and navies from 74 countries. The International Fleet Review 2026, reviewed by President Droupadi Murmu, featured more than 85 ships, showcasing India’s indigenous naval capabilities, including the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant. The city also hosted the 9th Conclave of Chiefs of the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS).
India’s evolving maritime strategy was formally articulated in the Indian Maritime Doctrine 2025, released on Navy Day. The doctrine formalises the “No War, No Peace” environment as a distinct operational category and reinforces India’s broader maritime vision, including MAHASAGAR, while emphasising grey-zone threats, emerging technologies and tri-service jointness.
As India deepens partnerships across the Indo-Pacific, the first year of MAHASAGAR suggests the country is positioning itself as a central maritime partner for nations across the Global South.