10 strategic bases that help India dominate the Indian Ocean

India’s Andaman & Nicobar Islands host the integrated Andaman & Nicobar Command (ANC), the country’s only tri-services theatre command, controlling land, air and sea assets. The island chain lies near the Six-Degree Channel and the Strait of Malacca, vital sea-lanes through which a large portion of global maritime traffic passes. Because of this location, the ANC enables India to monitor and potentially influence shipping traffic between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, enhancing its strategic reach in the eastern Indian Ocean.

On this remote island in Mauritius, India is reported to have established radar and surveillance infrastructure that bolsters its “Necklace of Diamonds” strategy in the Indian Ocean. The base offers advance monitoring capability to track vessel movements far into the central Indian Ocean region. Its strategic value comes from being beyond India’s littoral waters, offering deeper projection into the sea-lanes toward East Africa and the western Indian Ocean.

Assumption Island in Seychelles hosts Indian-developed radar and logistics facilities used in partnership between India and Seychelles. These assets help India monitor maritime activity, combat piracy and secure its western maritime flank. Positioned in the central western Indian Ocean, these facilities strengthen India’s ability to operate beyond its immediate neighbourhood.

Duqm Port in Oman offers India logistics and access in the Arabian Sea. India’s partnership at Duqm enhances its ability to support naval deployments and maintain presence in the western Indian Ocean and Gulf region. From Duqm, India can sustain operations, project power and secure maritime trade routes stretching toward the Horn of Africa and Gulf of Oman.

On Minicoy Island (Lakshadweep), India is developing naval base infrastructure (INS Jatayu) to strengthen its coverage of the Arabian Sea and the western entry points into the Indian Ocean. A Reuters report notes the base enhances India’s reach in anti-piracy and anti-narcotics operations. Located near crucial maritime trade passages, this base will help India monitor sea-lines of communication (SLOCs) and emerging threats in the region.

INS Vajrakosh on the western coast at Karwar is a specialised missile and ammunition storage facility for the Indian Navy. The base supports offensive and defensive operations in the Arabian Sea, enhancing India’s western maritime deterrence. Its presence helps India sustain naval fire-power and quick response along the busy western maritime axis.

Commissioned in Gujarat, INS Sardar Patel strengthens India’s presence along the western coast facing the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Kutch. The base supports operations of ships, submarines and maritime aircraft, bolstering coastal and offshore security. Its location allows India to monitor shipping and protect vital crude oil import routes that run through the Arabian Sea.

Visakhapatnam, home to the Eastern Naval Command, is India’s principal eastern seaboard naval hub. Given India’s eastern maritime frontier in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea, the base enables operations into the eastern Indian Ocean and supports the Navy’s blue-water ambitions. From here, India can project power into Southeast Asia and secure eastern sea lanes that feed the Indian Ocean region.

The naval base at Kavaratti strengthens India’s presence in the Lakshadweep archipelago, an area strategically located in the Arabian Sea and near key shipping routes. India uses these islands to enhance maritime surveillance and operational reach in the western Indian Ocean. These facilities serve as forward logistic and surveillance points, offering India early warning and rapid deployment capacity.

(Note: Minicoy is listed already, but included here to emphasise dual-use, air and naval operations)

This base, recently commissioned, provides enhanced monitoring and surface-asset operations along the southern axis of India’s maritime frontier, effectively bridging the Indian Ocean with the Arabian Sea and offering a vantage point near the Maldives and the major sea-lanes in the region. With dual-use capability (air and sea), the facility strengthens India’s strategic depth and ability to respond across the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).