Navy chief begins four-day Mauritius visit to boost maritime ties
The Chief of the Naval Staff began a four-day official visit to Mauritius to strengthen bilateral maritime cooperation
The visit includes engagements with senior Mauritian government leadership on maritime security, defence cooperation and capacity building
The engagements are framed around India's MAHASAGAR vision for security and growth cooperation across the Indian Ocean Region and beyond
The visit continues an established pattern of India-Mauritius naval interaction, including training exchanges, joint Exclusive Economic Zone surveillance, and hydrographic cooperation
From SAGAR to MAHASAGAR: India's Maritime Doctrine
India's maritime doctrine for the Indian Ocean Region has evolved from a regionally focused vision to an explicitly global one, both launched from Mauritius — a recurring UPSC theme linking foreign policy doctrine names to their year and geographic scope.
Key Details
- SAGAR ("Security and Growth for All in the Region") was announced by the Prime Minister during a 2015 visit to Mauritius, focused on the Indian Ocean Region: maritime security, economic cooperation, connectivity, and disaster relief
- MAHASAGAR ("Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions") was unveiled during a March 2025 visit to Mauritius, explicitly described as going "beyond SAGAR" to cover the wider Global South, not just the IOR
- MAHASAGAR adds trade for development, capacity building for sustainable growth, and technology sharing/concessional financing as pillars, alongside traditional maritime security cooperation
- Both doctrines were launched from Mauritius, underscoring the island nation's continuing centrality to India's Indian Ocean strategy
The Navy chief's visit operationalises MAHASAGAR at the military-to-military level, translating the 2025 political vision into concrete naval engagement and capacity-building activity.
India-Mauritius Defence and Maritime Infrastructure Cooperation
Mauritius hosts one of India's most significant Indian Ocean infrastructure partnerships, making it a key case study for questions on India's "net security provider" role in the IOR.
Key Details
- India and Mauritius signed an agreement in 2015 for developing infrastructure on Mauritius's Agalega archipelago to improve sea and air connectivity and strengthen Mauritian defence force capability
- India funded and built a 3-km airstrip and jetty at Agalega, jointly inaugurated in 2024
- India extended Mauritius a US$100 million line of credit (February 2021) for procurement of Indian defence equipment
- India has supplied Mauritius with helicopters, patrol vessels, aircraft and fast interceptor boats, and helped establish its Coastal Surveillance Radar System
- Indian Navy and the Mauritius National Coast Guard conduct regular joint Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) surveillance missions, training exchanges, and hydrographic surveys
The current visit builds on this established infrastructure and capacity-building relationship, reinforcing India's role as Mauritius's primary maritime security partner.
Indian Ocean Region (IOR) as a Strategic Theatre
Mauritius's location gives it outsized strategic value in the IOR, relevant to India's broader maritime security posture amid growing extra-regional presence in the region.
Key Details
- Mauritius sits in the southwest Indian Ocean, controlling a large Exclusive Economic Zone that includes the Chagos Archipelago region and the strategically located Agalega Islands
- India's IOR strategy rests on institutions such as the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA, est. 1997) and the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS, est. 2008, India-founded)
- India positions itself as a "net security provider" in the IOR through capacity building, EEZ surveillance support, hydrography, and platform transfers to island states such as Mauritius, Seychelles, Maldives and Sri Lanka
- The Chief of the Naval Staff is the professional head of the Indian Navy, distinct from the political/administrative head (Raksha Mantri) and reports through the Chiefs of Staff Committee
High-level naval visits such as this one are the operational instrument through which India sustains its net-security-provider role and counters competing external influence in the southwest Indian Ocean.
- SAGAR doctrine announced: 2015, during a Mauritius visit
- MAHASAGAR vision announced: March 2025, during a Mauritius visit
- India-Mauritius Agalega infrastructure agreement: 2015; airstrip and jetty inaugurated: 2024
- India's line of credit to Mauritius for defence procurement: US$100 million (February 2021)
- Visit duration: four days
- IORA established: 1997; IONS established: 2008 (India-founded)