CM to attend Navy day Op Demo at Vizag on Jan 4

“The Chief Minister has given his consent to be the chief guest on that day,’’ said Flag Officer, Commanding-In-Chief Vice Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar.

Talking to the reporters at the Eastern Naval Command headquarters in Visakhapatnam on Monday, the Vice Admiral said the Navy Day operational demo by ships, submarines and aircrafts this year would be conducted off Puri Beach in Odisha on December 4. President Droupadi Murmu would be the chief guest.

In addition to Operation Demo on January 4, several other events have been planned in Visakhapatnam in connection with the Navy Day which includes a concert by the Navy Band, visit of ships by schoolchildren and Navy marathon on December 15.

Explaining the importance of the navy to the nation, the Vice Admiral said 90 per cent of trade by volume and over 70 per cent of energy needs pass through the Indian Ocean. The Indian Navy, as a manifestation of the country’s maritime military power, has the onerous responsibility of maintaining stability in the region and safeguarding these waters that, above all, are critical to India’s security and economic prosperity. Since its inception as a small outpost in 1968, the Eastern Naval Command has indeed come a long way and has progressively grown with bases now distributed along the coast, adequately covering the coastline that stretches 2,562 kilometres.

The Eastern Naval Command’s area of responsibility extends from the east coast of India to the western pacific and up to the edge of the southern Indian Ocean. In the past year, the command has utilised its assets in all three dimensions to safeguard sea lanes, ensure uninterrupted trade, provide coastal defence, and monitor all maritime activities of interest in the region.

Back home, the Eastern Naval Command has been taking up humanitarian activities by using its men and machinery during floods and other natural calamities, the Vice Admiral said.