Posts

INDIA @75: REFLECTIONS ON THE HOMELAND DIMENSIONS OF MARITIME SECURITY IN INDIA
As India celebrates and commemorates 75 years of independence, it is also a moment to trace the events which shaped the development of the homeland dimensions of maritime security and to reflect on its evolution. Evolving maritime threats,…

STRENGTHENING NEARCOAST SEARCH AND RESCUE: A WHOLE-OF-SOCIETY APPROACH
Coastal States are required to establish, operate and maintain effective Search and Rescue (SAR) services. India’s responsibilities for such services, which begins from its coast, extends over an expansive region, and necessitates the use…

MARITIME DIMENSIONS OF SMUGGLING IN INDIA: AN ASSESSMENT
Introduction
In a series of articles published since 2020, assessments on non-traditional maritime security threats to India, such as armed robbery, climate change, drug trafficking have been made. This article explores the maritime dimensions…

AN INTEGRATED APPROACH TO COASTAL AND OFFSHORE DEFENCE: LEVERAGING THE COASTAL SECURITY CONSTRUCT
Introduction
The second edition of Exercise SEA VIGIL, a two day pan-India biennial coastal defence exercise, was conducted on 12 and 13 January 2021.[1] The exercise, which is India’s largest such exercise, was facilitated by central…

ARMED ROBBERY AT SEA IN INDIA: TRENDS AND IMPERATIVES
Introduction
‘Armed robbery against ships’ [hereinafter referred to as ‘armed robbery’] has been defined by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) as “any illegal act of violence or detention, or any act of depredation,…

VULNERABILITY OF COASTAL CITIES: AN INTEGRATED ADAPTATION APPROACH- PART 2
Part I of this article had addressed the vulnerability of coastal cities to climate-change-induced impacts such as extreme-weather events, and sea-level rise. This second part explores how the most-vulnerable groups within coastal communities…

COASTAL SECURITY IN INDIA: TWELVE YEARS AFTER ‘26/11’
INTRODUCTION
It has been twelve years since the heinous attack on Mumbai on 26 November 2008. While ‘coastal border management’ was institutionalised in 2004 with the establishment of the Department of Border Management (DoBM) in the…

IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON COASTAL CITIES: AN ‘INTEGRATED ADAPTATION’ APPROACH PART I
Abstract
A country’s coastline is the epicentre of its business, commerce, transportation, and industry. It provides a majority of the global ecosystem goods and services that are central to the country’s socio-cultural and economic…

CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACT ON MANGROVE ECOSYSTEMS IN INDIA’s COASTAL REGIONS
Abstract
Mangroves are amongst the world’s most fragile ecosystems. The impacts of global climate change such as rising sea-level, altering weather patterns, and acidifying oceans are putting mangrove forests at high risk. In addition,…

EXPANSION OF THE NATIONAL CADET CORPS IN COASTAL DISTRICTS: STRENGTHENING LOCAL CAPACITIES FOR MARITIME SECURITY
Introduction
The genesis of the National Cadet Corps (NCC) is intricately linked to the India-Pakistan War of 1947-48. The war highlighted the need for sufficient strength of reserves who could take up arms when required. This found…

INDIA'S EVOLVING COASTAL SECURITY ARCHITECTURE: A CASE FOR A NEW CENTRAL FORCE
It has now been over a decade since the Mumbai terrorist attacks of November 2008 (26/11) undertaken by the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Tohiba (LeT) group. Since then, considerable efforts have been made to streamline India’s coastal security,…

COMMUNITY-ENGAGED MARITIME SECURITY: BEYOND 'EYES AND EARS'
In March 2018, as per media reports, Neil Basu, the Scotland Yard’s newly appointed Indian-origin Assistant Commissioner of Police responsible for counter-terrorism, launched a new campaign to urge the public to fight terrorism. According…