Why is maritime security vital to protect India’s sea trade? Discuss maritime and coastal security challenges and the way forward.
Approach · directive: “why / discuss”
What it asks · Explain why secure seas matter for India’s trade and energy, set out the maritime and coastal threats, and propose a way forward.
The question has 3 parts — answer each
- Explain why maritime security is vital to protect India's sea trade
- Discuss the maritime and coastal security challenges
- Discuss the way forward — institutions, capacity, partnerships and resilience
Open with · Nearly 95% of India’s trade by volume and about 70% by value moves by sea — sea lanes are the arteries of the economy.
Cover
- Why vital: oil, LNG and container trade pass chokepoints (Hormuz, Bab-el-Mandeb, Malacca); disruption raises freight and insurance costs, as in the Red Sea crisis.
- Non-traditional threats: piracy off Somalia, attacks on merchant ships, illegal fishing, drug and arms smuggling by sea.
- Strategic threats: growing extra-regional naval presence, dual-use ports and research vessels in the Indian Ocean, grey-zone tactics.
- Coastal gaps: long coastline and islands; seaborne infiltration as in 26/11; tracking lakhs of small boats; coordination among Navy, Coast Guard, marine police.
- Climate and disaster: cyclones, sea-level rise and oil spills threaten ports and coastal communities.
- Way forward — institutions: coastal radar chain, IFC-IOR at Gurugram, transponders on fishing boats, National Maritime Security Coordinator, stronger marine police.
- Way forward — capacity and partners: blue-water navy and shipbuilding, deep-water ports, Andaman and Nicobar Command; SAGAR/MAHASAGAR, IORA, Quad, Colombo Security Conclave.
Close with · A secure Indian Ocean is the precondition for India’s growth; integrated maritime governance and partnerships can make India the region’s preferred security partner.
Add value (verified)
- Nearly 95% of India’s trade by volume and about 70% by value moves through maritime routes. PIB Backgrounder — Maritime India: From Vision 2030 to Amrit Kaal 2047 (26 October 2025) ↗“Nearly 95% of India’s trade by volume and about 70% by value moves through maritime routes, underlining the sector’s centrality to India’s economy and competitiveness.”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2025, GS Paper III — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 314 words (UPSC limit 250) · Minimalist IAS
Nearly 95% of India's trade by volume and about 70% by value moves by sea — the sea lanes of the Indian Ocean are the arteries of the economy, and their security is a national interest, not only a naval task.
Why maritime security is vital
- Energy and trade lifelines: crude, LNG and container traffic pass chokepoints — Hormuz, Bab-el-Mandeb, Malacca — where disruption raises freight and insurance costs, as the Red Sea crisis showed.
- Ports and the blue economy: shipping, shipbuilding, fisheries and offshore energy depend on secure waters along a long coastline and island chains.
- Strategic weight: a secure Indian Ocean underpins India's role as a net security provider and its Indo-Pacific partnerships.
Maritime and coastal challenges
- Non-traditional: piracy off Somalia, attacks on merchant ships, illegal and unreported fishing, and drug and arms smuggling by sea.
- Strategic: growing extra-regional naval presence, dual-use ports and research vessels in the Indian Ocean, and grey-zone tactics.
- Coastal: seaborne infiltration as in 26/11, lakhs of small fishing boats to track, and coordination among the Navy, Coast Guard, marine police and customs.
- Climate and disaster: cyclones, sea-level rise and oil spills threaten ports and coastal communities.
- Cyber and infrastructure: port systems and undersea cables are new targets.
Way forward
- Institutions: the coastal radar chain, transponders on fishing boats, the Information Fusion Centre–Indian Ocean Region at Gurugram, the National Maritime Security Coordinator and stronger marine police with joint exercises.
- Capacity: a blue-water navy with indigenous shipbuilding, deep-water ports, the Andaman and Nicobar Command as a forward post, and maritime domain awareness through satellites and drones.
- Partnerships: SAGAR and MAHASAGAR, IORA, the Quad's maritime initiatives, the Colombo Security Conclave and coordinated patrols with neighbours.
- Resilience: climate-proof ports, oil-spill response and community-based coastal watch through fishing communities.
A secure Indian Ocean is the precondition for India's growth; integrated maritime governance and partnerships can make India the region's preferred security partner.
Written by Minimalist IAS from facts checked at source (how we verify) — a little fuller than exam length, so every part of the question is covered; in the hall, keep the structure and trim the detail. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.