Joint Military Exercise between the Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces |01 April 2022

Participants and guests in a souvenir photograph (Photo: Thomas Meriton)

Ninth Indo-Seychellois Joint military exercise ‘Lamitye 2022’ comes to an end

The ninth Joint military exercise ‘Lamitye 2022’ between the Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) held between March 22 -31 officially came to an end yesterday with exchanges of mementos during a ceremony held at the auditorium of the Seychelles Coast Guard (SCG) at Perseverance.

Vice-President Ahmed Afif, Minister for Internal Affairs Errol Fonseka, Indian High Commissioner to Seychelles Dalbir Singh Suhag, Chief of Defence Forces Brigadier Michael Rosette, Brigadier Navtej Singh Sohal, head of the Indian Observer delegation, Commander of the SCG Colonel Jean Atala, and Major Abhishek Nepal Singh, Company Commander of Indian Army contingent were among the guests at the ceremony which also gathered the exercise participants, both from the local and Indian forces.

The biennial training, which has been conducted in Seychelles since 2001, is aimed at building and promoting bilateral military relations, sharing experiences gained during various operations and exchanging skills and good practices between both armies.

The Indian Army which comprised troops from the 2/3 Gorkha Rifles group (Prikanthi Battalion) along with the SDF took part in the exercise which was also to share experiences gained during various operations against hostile forces in a semi-urban environment and enhance capability to undertake joint operations.
The exercise is crucial and significant in terms of security challenges faced by both the nations in the backdrop of the current global situation and growing security concerns in the Indian Ocean region.

The 10-day-long joint exercise included field training exercises, combat discussions, lectures, demonstrations and culminated with a two-day validation exercise.

Both sides jointly trained, planned and executed a series of well-developed tactical drills for neutralisation of likely threats.

Emphasis was also put on enhancing tactical skills in combating hostile forces in semi-urban environment and on increasing interoperability between forces.

On behalf of the SDF, Brigadier Rosette noted that the biennial exercise was a great opportunity for the two forces to participate together for 10 days during which they were able to exchange tactics, plans and exercised through a comprehensive programme, drafted jointly by the two forces which took into account the strengths, specialisations and requirements of both participating forces.

He added that the exercise was also guided by the spirit of friendship, mutual understanding and togetherness.

Brigadier Rosette further added that the theme of this year’s exercise and the setting was contemporary and aimed at addressing evolving scenarios of today’s fluid world characterised by acts of violence and destabilisation perpetuated by non-state actors.

He added that Seychelles ensured that all its main units – Coast Guard, Air Force, Special Forces – were represented and integrated within the exercise, not for inclusivity, but rather to ensure that they train how to operate jointly as a coordinated cohesive body, that is efficient and adapted to work alongside other forces whether in exercises, or real operations.

On his part, High Commissioner Suhag thanked all the exercise participants and coordinating staff for making it a success, despite the difficulties caused by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Roland Duval