New Delhi, Dec 03, TEN Network | Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh, on Tuesday, said that the presence of China in the Indian Ocean is increasing and added that the Indian Navy is constantly watching it. Addressing a press conference ahead of the Navy Day celebrations on December 4, Singh said that the Chinese vessels may have entered IOR for an exercise with Pakistan.
Commenting on the recent incident, wherein Chinese vessel Shin Yan 1 was driven away by the Indian Navy, Singh said, “Our stand is that if you have to work in our Exclusive Economic Zone, then you have to take our permission.”
“Presence of China in the Indian Ocean Region is increasing and we are constantly watching it… China and Pakistan are scheduled to hold an exercise, and to take part in this exercise their vessels must have entered the Indian Ocean Region,” he said.
Expressing concern over the decline in Navy’s share in the defence budget from 18 per cent in 2012 to 12 per cent in 2018, Singh said that the maritime force plans to have three aircraft carriers in the fleet in the long term. “As the Navy Chief, I am convinced that the country needs three aircraft carriers so that two are operational at all times. We think it should be 65,000 tonnes with electromagnetic propulsion,” he said.
Elaborating upon the operational preparedness and the current acquisitions of the Indian Navy under the Make in India programme, Singh said, “50 warships and submarines of the Indian Navy are under construction of which 48 are on order in Indian shipyards.”
“We are putting our defence and security in place to ensure that threats from terror groups (like Al Qaeda) are thwarted. I want to assure that Navy along with the Coast Guard and other security agencies are ready to face any challenge,” he said. (TN)
