NewDelhi Feb 17 : Former navy vice chief, Vice Admiral G Ashok Kumar, on Wednesday took over as India’s first national maritime security coordinator (NMSC) amid growing threats to coastal security and changing power dynamics in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), where China is trying to expand its sphere of influence, officials familiar with the development said on Wednesday.
Kumar has been handpicked for the challenging role. He will report directly to national security adviser Ajit Doval. To be sure, NMSC will have no forces under him.
An alumnus of Sainik School, Amaravathi Nagar in Tamil Nadu, and National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla, Pune, Kumar was commissioned into the executive branch of the navy in July 1982. He retired as the navy’s vice chief last year.
The Cabinet Committee on Security, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, gave its nod to the creation of the post of NMSC last November. The appointment came two decades after a recommendation made by a group of ministers on the back of the 1999 Kargil war with Pakistan to strengthen the national security architecture. The 26/11 Mumbai terror strikes gave new impetus to bolster maritime security.
Kumar, a specialist in navigation and direction, will be the principal adviser to the government on maritime security. The admiral is a graduate of the prestigious Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, and has attended the Army Higher Command Course at Mhow and been part of a specialised course on expeditionary operations at Quantico, Virginia, USA.
The warships he has served on include Beas, Nilgiri, Ranvir, Vikrant, Kulish and Brahmaputra. In his previous appointments, Kumar has served as India’s defence adviser in Singapore, commandant of the National Defence Academy and the navy’s deputy chief.
Experts said the appointment of NMSC was a significant development. “NMSC will coordinate the actions of all stakeholders in coastal security. The existing set-up had room for improvement without a doubt,” said security affairs expert Vice Admiral Shekhar Sinha (retd).
The appointment of NMSC has filled the need of the hour as the navy, coast guard and other maritime agencies worked in silos with overlapping jurisdictions and were constantly at odds with each other.
India is a maritime nation with more than 7,000km of coastline and over two million km of exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Every coastal country’s EEZ extends to 200 nautical miles (370 km) from its shores and the country in question has exclusive rights to all resources in the waters, including oil, natural gas and fish.
More than 70% of Indian trade, including vital crude oil, is transported through sea and protection of shipping lanes is vital to the country’s security.
With China moving towards a sea-based security doctrine and penetrating into the Indian Ocean through Pakistan and Myanmar, the post of NMSC will be vital for maritime and energy security as Beijing plans to reach the eastern sea board of Africa through the Indian maritime domain.
The capital budget of the navy and coast guard has also gone up significantly this year, reflecting the government’s focus on maritime security – their capital outlays have increased by 44.5% and 60.2%, respectively.