• Indian naval ships ‘Rana’ and ‘Jyoti’ participated in the 12th edition of SLINEX exercise between the navies of India and Sri Lanka in Colombo.

• Conceptualised in 2005, Sri Lanka-India Naval Exercise (SLINEX) is a bilateral exercise that has strengthened maritime cooperation between the two nations over two decades.

• SLINEX aims at enhancing interoperability, maritime cooperation and exchanging of best practices while jointly undertaking multi-faceted maritime operations.

• The previous edition of SLINEX was conducted at Visakhapatnam, India from December 17-20, 2024.

• The exercise was conducted in two phases — the harbour phase in Colombo from August 14-16 and followed by the sea phase from August 17-18. 

• INS Rana, a guided missile destroyer, and INS Jyoti, a fleet tanker, participated in the exercise. 

• SLNS Gajabahu and Vijayabahu (both Advance Offshore Patrol Vessels) represented the Sri Lankan Navy.

• Sri Lanka Air Force BEL 412 helicopters also participated in the exercise. 

• The SLINEX maritime exercise exemplifies the deep engagement between India and Sri Lanka, which has strengthened cooperation in the maritime domain in consonance with India’s policy of Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions (MAHASAGAR).

Other bilateral exercise with Sri Lanka

• Mitra Shakti - Joint Military Exercise.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)