13-nation PRAGATI military exercise begins in Meghalaya

• Multilateral military exercise PRAGATI 2026 commenced at Umroi Military Station, Meghalaya, with the participation from 12 friendly nations on May 20.

• These countries are: Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Seychelles, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.

• PRAGATI stands for ‘Partnership of Regional Armies for Growth and Transformation in the Indian Ocean Region’.

• The two-week exercise will focus on counter-terrorism operations in semi-mountainous and jungle terrain. 

• The training programme will include joint planning exercises, tactical-level drills and coordinated operations designed to improve adaptability, endurance and tactical proficiency of participating troops.

• The objectives of the exercise include enabling seamless coordination among participating nations in joint operations, identifying common areas of cooperation, sharing expertise and establishing an institutionalised mechanism for exchange of best practices evolved through individual experiences.

• Strengthening defence ties and camaraderie through joint training and cultural exchange, and evolving common concepts for management and sharing of intelligence in a multinational environment are also part of this elite programme.

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