Exercise Bongosagar

7.Exercise Bongosagar: The India-Bangladesh naval exercise 'Bongosagar 2025' and a Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) were recently conducted in the Bay of Bengal.

• About Exercise Bongosagar: It is a bilateral naval exercise between India and Bangladesh.

o Aimed at enhancing interoperability and operational expertise, it covers a wide range of maritime operations.

o Initiated in 2019, the 2025 edition marks the fifth installment of this exercise.

o The latest edition saw the participation of INS Ranvir from the Indian Navy and BNS Abu Ubaidah from the Bangladesh Navy.

o It strengthened collaborative responses to maritime security challenges through improved interoperability between the two navies.

o The exercise involved diverse complex operations, such as - Surface firing and tactical manoeuvres.

ü Underway replenishment and Visit-Board-Search-Seizure (VBSS) cross boarding.

ü Communication drills and a quiz on operational topics for the Ops team and junior officers.

ü Steam past to conclude the exercise.

o The exercise provided an opportunity to enhance tactical planning, coordination, and information sharing for seamless maritime operations.

• About INS Ranvir: It is a Rajput-Class guided missile destroyer equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and sensors, most of which are indigenously developed.
• It is the fourth of the five Rajput-class destroyers built for the Indian Navy and was commissioned on 28 October 1986.