Rajnath Singh Calls for Stronger Maritime Surveillance at Navy Commanders' Conference

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on September 29, 2026, addressed the second edition of the Indian Navy's biannual Commanders' Conference at Nausena Bhawan in New Delhi, describing India as the first responder and a preferred security partner in the Indian Ocean Region. He said the world is watching both India's strategic position and its strategic responsibility grow.

Singh noted that congestion, deception and grey-zone activities have made the maritime domain more complex, and called for monitoring and response mechanisms to be raised to a new level. He pointed to the presence of Indian warships in the South China Sea, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean as evidence of the Navy's blue-water capability, and underlined its role in providing strategic depth and regional power projection.

Highlighting the government's modernisation push, Singh said the Navy serves as a strategic anchor for the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, contributing not only to the guarding of maritime boundaries but also to economic protection, regional stability and power projection. He urged the force to become future-ready, combat-ready and globally respected.

On West Asia, he praised the Navy's role in ensuring the safe transit of Indian-flagged merchant vessels, particularly LPG tankers, through the Strait of Hormuz under Operation Urja Suraksha. He noted that India imports roughly 85–90 per cent of its crude oil and about 50 per cent of its natural gas by sea, linking sea-lane security directly to the economy, energy supplies and defence preparedness.

On self-reliance, Singh said the Navy's warship production ecosystem now meets global benchmarks, with recently commissioned vessels containing over 75 per cent indigenous content. He said India must not only meet its own requirements but also export warships to friendly foreign nations, and called for a significant upgrade of the maritime surveillance architecture to handle growing traffic and complexity.

He described 2026 as a historic year for the Navy, with 18 warships planned for induction or commissioning — the largest single-year force accretion in its history. He commended the service's "All Ranks, All Roles" approach, including the deployment of women officers on frontline warships and aircraft and their participation in navigational expeditions such as Navika Sagar Parikrama.

Singh congratulated the Navy on assuming command of Combined Task Force-154 under the Combined Maritime Forces, and noted Operation Southern Readiness in Kochi during India's tenure, which involved 276 personnel from 27 countries, 76 facilitators and subject-matter experts, and four international organisations. He also praised the deployment of INS Sudarshini for Lokayan-26, which strengthened maritime diplomacy and engagement with the Indian diaspora across the United States, Atlantic and Mediterranean regions.

Concluding, Singh said India's maritime power is not about merely displaying the national flag at sea but about conveying security, trust and confidence wherever the Tricolour is seen. He reaffirmed government support to the Navy, stating that if the seas are secure, India will be secure, and that a secure India will strengthen the resolve for a Viksit Bharat. He also interacted with the Chief of Defence Staff and the Chief of the Army Staff during the conference.

The three-day apex-level conference, running from September 29 to October 1, 2026, brings together the Navy's top leadership to review operational preparedness, maritime security and future capability development.