Joint Army Navy sailing expedition flagged off

Photocaptions

Pix1: The sailing expedition cast off from Kochi

Pix2: The sailing expedition being flagged off by Rear Admiral Jamwal and Maj Gen GS Narang

Pix3: Maj Gen GS Narang presenting a memento to the Southern Naval Command

Pix4: The sailing expedition prior to Flag Off from Kochi.

A joint sailing expedition by the Indian Army and Indian Navy to Mumbai was Flagged Off from the Naval Base by Rear Admiral SS Jamwal, Chief of Staff of Southern Naval Command and Major General GS Narang, General Officer Commanding 41 Artillery Division. The sailing expedition commemorates the 12^th reunion of the Regiment of Artillery and is being undertaken in three sail boats of J-24 Class. Lieutenant Commander Niel Manjooran, leads the team with two officers from the Indian Army and 17 Soldiers and Sailors.

Such joint ventures between the Army and Navy got fresh impetus post the affiliation of the Naval Gunnery School, INS Dronacharya with the Indian Army's Artillery School at Devlali in August 2008. The joint Gunners team is expected to reach Mumbai on 3^rd February where they would be Flagged In by the Director General of the Corps of Artillery of the Indian Army.

Indian Navy Southern naval command commences training for Sagar Prahari Bal

The training for the first batch of Sagar Prahari Bal (SPB) would commence from 11th January at the Naval Gunnery School, INS Dronacharya, Kochi. The SPB formed on directives of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) will have strength of 1000 men including 120 officers and would eventually possess adequate number of Fast Interception Craft (FIC) for coastal operations. The charter of duties of the newly formed force would include force protection, seaward security of coastal and offshore naval assets, assistance to civil agencies and ensuring compliance of maritime regulations.


The Sagar Prahari Bal, drawn from within the Indian Navy, for a fixed tenure, will maintain a youthful profile and will undergo specialized training in Asymmetric Warfare and Low Intensity Maritime Operations (LIMO). The first batch would comprise of 15 Officers and 100 men. The three week course induction course would be conducted every six months.