- The entire nation was aghast and felt extremely disturbed when the dastardly terrorist attack perpetrated by Pakistan on 26th November 2011 in Mumbai resulted in the martyrdom of our brave security personnel. As reported, 166 casualties were rendering a huge loss to the families as well as the nation. It would not be an understatement to mention that this particular incident changed the way security scenarios in the country used to be looked upon by the Indian establishment. Of course, sporadic Pakistani misadventures were not a new phenomenon for the country has faced the brunt of terrorism-related attacks for so long.
PC: Azmat Khan
- However, 26/11, as it has come to know, indeed not only altered security perception to a great extent but also firmed up our resolve to act decisively on several fronts vis-à-vis guarding sovereignty. As you are aware, the terrorists involved in the dastardly 26/11 attacks in Mumbai snuck into the megacity via sea. Soon after the incident, several measures were contemplated by the Defence ministry. One such measure was to appoint a maritime security advisory board and the appointment of a maritime security adviser to plug the glaring lacuna. As is its wont, the well-known bureaucratic sloth and turf wars ensured these were kept pending.
- Now in a welcome but surreally delayed move, the Government of India has finally appointed the country’s first National Maritime Security Coordinator (NMSC) to ensure effective coordination among multiple agencies dealing with threats from the high seas. It was announced that Vice-Admiral (retired) G Ashok Kumar will be the first to occupy the post in the National Security Council Secretariat under the National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. The moot point to ponder over here is why it took 14 long years to create this post since the urgency of the matter demanded expeditious implementation of the Defence Ministry’s recommendations.
PC: ABHIJIT SINGH
- As they say, better late than never. That said, the NMSC’s appointment comes at a critical point in India’s evolving strategic-security environment. Faced with a China-Pakistan axis, New Delhi not only needs to be alert to threats from sea-borne non-state actors but also keep an eye on Chinese maritime designs in the Indian Ocean Region. The world knows about the aggressive, ambitious, and expansionist traits of China in the last few years. Mind you, China today has the largest navy and a maritime militia force to carry out grey-zone tactics against adversaries. To counter this and protect India’s 7,516-km coastline and 2 million sq km of Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), a single-point coordinator like the NMSC for all aspects of maritime security was much needed.
- Make no mistake, there is a need for enhanced maritime domain awareness to protect both security and economic interests. Most importantly, 90% of India’s trade, by volume, transits through the seas. As such, coming into being of the NMSC ensures the laying of the blueprint for a truly modern maritime security system.
