News:Recently, Indian Navy Chief has visited the INS Baaz,the southernmost air station of the Indian Armed Forces.
Facts:
About INS Baaz:
- The Indian Naval Station (INS) ‘Baaz’ was commissioned in July 2012, and is the southernmost air station of the Indian Armed Forces.It is a part of the Andaman and Nicobar Command.
- INS Baaz is located at Campbell Bay on the Great Nicobar island,the southernmost and largest island in the UT of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
- This island is also the location of the Indira Point and is less than 250 km by sea from Banda Aceh in Indonesia.
Significance of INS Baaz:
- The Andaman & Nicobar Islands are strategically important for India’s national security as they provide a critical capability to monitor sea areas in the region.
- The INS Baaz helps in building Maritime Domain Awareness by providing information via airborne surveillance using aircraft and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles(UAVs).
- The base also helps to ensure maritime security in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea and substantially enhances the Indian Navy’s maritime surveillance capability.
- The base also assists the local population in times of need such as facilitating evacuation during medical emergencies.
- Further,the location of the base has been described as India’s “window into East and Southeast Asia and is in close vicinity of the Six Degree Channel also called the Great Channel.
Additional information:
About Green Channel:
- The Great Channel in the Indian Ocean separates Great Nicobar Island of India and Aceh Province of Indonesia.
- The Great Channel is located at six degrees north of the equator and is popularly referred to as the ‘Six Degree Channel’.
About Andaman and Nicobar Command(ANC):
- Andaman and Nicobar Command was created in 2001.
- It is the first and only tri-service command of the Indian Armed Forces based at Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
- It was created to safeguard India’s interests in the Strait of Malacca and in Southeast Asia.
- The ANC provides logistics and administrative support to Indian ships that are deployed in East Asia and Pacific Ocean.
