3 days ago
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Armies of 13 countries came unneurotic successful Meghalaya's Umroi for the maiden multilateral subject workout 'Pragati 2026', which concluded connected Saturday (May 30, 2026) with a absorption connected countering insurgency and gathering communal spot among the nations successful the Indian Ocean region, officials said.
Over 400 soldiers, including astir 20 women, from Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and India slithered down from helicopters, detected improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on routes and climbed down rocky walls during the two-week exercise, they said.
Detailed discussions connected however to incorporated niche technologies and the effect of these connected the tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) were held during the two-week-long programme.
"Pragati was a mega workout successful the serene situation of Umroi successful Meghalaya. We conducted assorted specialised drills and procedures, including stone craft, peculiar heliborne operations, tactical situations," said Brigadier Mayur Shekatkar, the main coordinator for the programme.
Director of the exercise, Col. Sandeep Poonia, said Pragati stands for 'Partnership of Regional Armies for Growth and Transformation successful the Indian Ocean Region'.
"The purpose is to make synergy, interoperability, and heighten communal spot among the affable overseas nations. The past 2 weeks we trained together, during which absorption was connected counter-insurgency operations based successful semi-mountainous and jungle terrain," helium said.
Mr. Shekatkar emphasised that it provided a level for gathering relationship and camaraderie among the participating nations, with the unit coming person by engaging themselves successful sports and games arsenic good arsenic taste activities.
The regular besides enabled them to acquisition the calmness of Yoga, helium added.
"We anticipation to execute the objectives of enhancing interoperability, gathering communal spot and each other's capacities done the sharing of champion practises. There is besides the facet of everlasting bonds of friendships, with the 1 nonsubjective of ensuring a unchangeable and unafraid region," the brigadier said.
Col. Sandeep Poonia said, "Detailed discussions were held connected however to incorporated the latest and niche technology, and what the effect of these connected our operations successful the TTPs (tactics, exertion and procedures." The workout besides provided an accidental for sharing cardinal champion practices successful the engineering field.
"As portion of the exercise, we person trained successful tactical environments wherein cardinal engineering tasks were done, and champion practices were shared. For instance, antagonistic IED drills were undertaken successful a simulated combat environment," Major Susmita S Variar, engineering typical successful the exercise, said.
She added that operating successful mixed groups with unit from overseas nations has fixed invaluable vulnerability to antithetic tactical drills, instrumentality and operating procedures, which volition heighten coordination. The participating overseas nations expressed gratitude to the Indian Army for hosting specified an exercise.
Lt. Col. Sangay Jantsho of the Royal Bhutan Army said, "We convey the Indian Army for organising this exercise, which has been a palmy one. It has been an accidental for america to interact with troops of different nations, larn and stock our acquisition and expertise successful counter-insurgency." He said it was a invaluable vulnerability to operating alongside antithetic countries.
Lt. Col. Louis Agathine harped connected the humanities ties betwixt his state Seychelles and India, and said specified exercises volition heighten relationship crossed the Indian Ocean region. "We are blessed to speech ideas, and we volition enactment into signifier what we learned," helium said.
Echoing their thoughts, Staff Sergeant Mary Simongo of the Philippines said, "We explicit our sincere acknowledgment to the Indian Army for this exercise. We gained invaluable cognition and ideas, which we volition instrumentality home."
