Naval leg of India, Russia tri-services exercise INDRA underway in Goa

A joint review meeting was held at the Naval Air Station INS Hansa in Goa on Friday during the naval phase of the ongoing joint tri-services exercise 'INDRA - 2019' between Indian and Russian armed forces.

The meeting saw the participation of Flag Officer Commanding Goa Naval Area, Rear Admiral Philipose G Pynumootil, along with senior officers from the Indian and Russian Federation Navy.

The tri-services exercise, which is being simultaneously conducted in Babina, Goa, and Pune, will help strengthen mutual confidence, interoperability and sharing of best practices between the armed forces of the two countries.

The Naval component of the exercise is being held in two phases: the Harbour phase, which began on December 10 and will include personal interaction, formal calls, planning conferences, and sports events between Indian and Russian Navy, while the sea phase would be conducted in the Arabian Sea from December 16 till December 19.

Some of the activities conducted as part of the Harbour Phase of the exercise include joint operations planning, communication trials, professional lectures and friendly football, basketball and volleyball matches between Indian and Russian federation navy.

Speaking at a press conference here, G Pynumootil said that INDRA-2019 will further strengthen relations between the Armed Forces of the two countries and enable undertaking joint operations in a cohesive manner to address common challenges.

Pynumootil informed that the sea phase of the exercise would witness the participation of INS Aditya, INS Tarkash, MIG 29K Fighter Aircraft, Maritime Patrol Aircraft and Ship Borne Helicopters from the Indian navy

"We are confident that the skills earned by our personnel would help in the execution of maritime operational tasks while promoting joint operations," Pynumootil said.