Over 50 foreign navies to take part in MILAN hosted by ENC

Visakhapatnam: Vice Admiral Sameer Saxena, Chief of Staff, Eastern Naval Command (ENC) on Friday said a host of activities are planned in the near future including Multilateral Naval Exercise (MILAN-24) and large scale-theatre level and multilateral exercises.

After reviewing a ceremonial parade at ENC Grounds at INS Circars here on the occasion of 75th Republic Day, he emphasised that during MILAN-24- the flagship event of the Eastern Naval Command, will attract representatives from over 50 countries including 20 ships and aircraft. The event underscores the importance of wholehearted participation of the entire command in making the event a grand success, he opined.

MILAN will be hosted from February 19 to 24 with the navies of friendly countries. MILAN is a biennial multilateral naval exercise, which assumes importance because of 'Look East' policy. It was first incepted in 1995 by the Indian Navy.

The ENC parade saw participation of over 600 personnel drawn from the ships, submarines, establishments, Defence Security Corps and Sea Cadet Corps of the command and was witnessed by a large gathering comprising service personnel and their families, veterans and civilian dignitaries. The Chief of Staff commended the men and women on parade for their immaculate turn out and smart drill. While addressing the parade, the Chief of Staff reminded everyone of the significance of the day that marked the country's journey as a democracy. He brought out that the makers of the Constitution were clearly aware of both the significance of the Statute as well as the challenges ahead. He acknowledged the tremendous efforts and responsibilities that lay ahead of everyone. He brought out that the Indian Navy is on the cusp of becoming gender neutral and that it was everyone's responsibility to make the endeavour a success.

Complimenting the Eastern Naval Command for the high tempo of activities and the steadfast focus on ensuring operational readiness, Vice Adm Saxena brought out that the ships, submarines and aircraft of ENC have extended their operational footprint around the entire globe.