Sitharaman to address Naval Commanders' conference

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will address the inaugural session of the bi-annual Naval commanders' conference on May 8.

In this four-day conference, the Indian Navy will review its new mission-based deployment philosophy aimed at ensuring peace and stability in the region.

On the inaugural day, Sitharaman's address will be followed by discussions with the officials of Ministry of Defence.

The new deployment philosophy is in sync with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR).

It aims at sustained, peaceful and responsive presence of Indian Naval ships in critical areas and choke points.

Various measures taken by the Indian Navy to improve Combat Efficiency, including the new transition cycle for ships and thereon to full-scale operations, will also be examined at the conference.

Apart from this, measures to ensure safety continued training, and checks and balances on crew proficiency on-board its frontline warships will also be reviewed.

Naval Commanders would deliberate upon steps to improve the Teeth-to-Tail ratio and explore niche fields such as Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Analytics.

Harnessing cutting-edge technology, specifically those 'Made-in-India', to improve organisational effectiveness and efficiency would be another key focus area of the Commanders.