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The Indian Naval Ship Imphal arrived at Port Louis, the capital city of Mauritius, on March 10, 2025, marking its maiden port call, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit.
The ship will participate in the 57th Mauritius National Day celebrations on 12 March 2025. According to the Ministry of Defence, the visit of INS Imphal is in keeping with the tradition of Indian warships and aircraft participating in Mauritius National Day celebrations. "The ship will field a marching contingent, naval band and helicopter for the flypast at the National Day Parade at Champs de Mars. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, will be the Chief Guest at the celebrations," the statement added. During her stay at Port Louis from 10 - 14 March, the ship is planned to participate in several training and cultural exchanges, including cross-training visits, friendly sports fixtures and community outreach activities. These activities aim to strengthen bilateral ties and maritime security cooperation between the two countries. A joint EEZ surveillance and exercise with MCGS ships is also planned. The planned interactions are firmly underpinned by India's 'Neighborhood First' policy and vision of SAGAR (Security And Growth for All in the Region) - espoused by the Hon'ble Prime Minister exactly a decade ago at Mauritius on the occasion of the commissioning of MCGS Barracuda, the first Indian-built warship to be inducted into the Mauritius National Coast Guard on 12th March 2015, as per Ministry of Defence The deployment of the latest Indian warship and aircraft at the Mauritius National Day celebrations also underscores India's deep commitment to promoting a safe, secure and stable IOR in partnership with island nations, particularly Mauritius, with which it shares strong historical, political, and economic, security and socio-cultural connections. Ministry of Defence stated, Commissioned in December 2023, Imphal is the third of the four Project 15B (Visakhapatnam class) indigenous destroyers. Equipped with state-of-the-art weapons, sensors and machinery, she ranks amongst the largest and most technologically advanced warships in the world. (ANI)
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