Defence Minister on the occasion of Navy Day tweeted “Indian Navy is the Formidable Blue Water Force. Navy Day Greetings to all Men and Women in White.”
What is the Blue Water Navy?
- A Blue Water Navy is one that has the capacity to project itself over a much bigger maritime area than its maritime borders.
- In simple words, it is a Navy that can go into the vast, deep oceans of the world.
- However, while most navies have the capacity to send ships into the deep oceans, a Blue Water Force is able to carry out operations far from its borders, without being required to return to its homeport to refuel or re-stock.
Does India qualify as a Blue Water Navy?
- According to the Indian Maritime Doctrine, 2015, “The ability to undertake distant operations distinguishes a blue-water navy from a brown-water force.
- It requires strong integral capacity, including logistics, surveillance, networked operations, etc., and enabling capability, including equipment design, training, doctrine and organization
- It states “distant operations rely upon the attributes of access, mobility, sustenance and reach in order to show presence, project power and/or accomplish other national objectives in the area of interest”.
- As the Indian Navy has the capacity to carry distant operations “at or from the sea, up to considerable distance from national shore bases”, it qualifies as a Blue Water Force.
Classification of Navy based on colours
- A navy whose operations are restricted close to the shore, where the water is muddy, is called a Brown Water Force.
- A navy that can go farther out is called a Green Water Force.
- And then there is a Blue Water Force.
INS Kadamba (Project Seabird)
- INS Kadamba is an Indian Navy base located near Karwar in Karnataka.
- The first phase of construction of the base, code-named Project Seabird was completed in 2005 and the base was commissioned on 31 May 2005.
- Development of Phase II commenced in 2011.
- INS Kadamba is currently the third-largest Indian naval base and is expected to become the largest naval base in the eastern hemisphere after completion of expansion Phase IIB
