PRAGATI 2026 And India's Emerging Role As A Net Regional Security Provider

Last Updated:May 30, 2026, 12:15 IST

On the final two days of the exercise, Indian defence companies and the Defence Research and DRDO set up an exposition for all participating delegations.

Tucked away in the hills of the Northeast, Umroi Military Station in Meghalaya houses the Indian Army’s integrated Joint Training Node (JTN). It has a specialised training facility built for jungle and high altitude warfare—exactly the kind of place India had in mind when it conceived PRAGATI 2026, the Partnership of Regional Armies for Growth and Transformation in the Indian Ocean Region. For two weeks beginning on May 18, twelve armies trained here together. Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, the Philippines, Seychelles, Sri Lanka and Vietnam all sent contingents. The Indian Army hosted. What unfolded over the fortnight was, by any reasonable measure, one of the most ambitious multilateral land force exercises India has ever organised.

The Exercise

The design of PRAGATI was deliberately operational. Rather than keeping national contingents in separate lanes, the Indian Army formed integrated mixed teams, grouping soldiers from different countries together and putting them through a shared programme. They ran ambush and counter ambush drills in jungle terrain, practised rock craft, conducted slithering exercises and trained on jungle lane shooting. Sniper competitions and AK 203 firing events were also organised.

Bus intervention operations, coordination drills and tactical planning exercises formed part of a curriculum built around counter terrorism scenarios in semi mountainous and jungle environments. This was not a generic exercise template. It reflected the actual security conditions that many participating nations deal with — ungoverned forest terrain, insurgent movement corridors and the operational difficulties that come with fighting in areas where visibility drops to a few metres and communications are unreliable.

The Indian Army also brought its K9 teams and robotic dogs into the field alongside foreign troops, demonstrating how modern battlefield tools can be integrated with conventional infantry operations. Between drills, volleyball courts and basketball grounds saw the same soldiers competing informally. Shared sporting competition between armies that have never operated together helps build familiarity.

Why These Nations?

The participating nations span India’s immediate neighbourhood — Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives — and extend into Southeast Asia through Cambodia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos and Myanmar, with Seychelles representing the wider Indian Ocean littoral. Together, they map almost exactly onto India’s two defining foreign policy frameworks: the Neighbourhood First Policy and the Act East Policy.

Hosting them in Meghalaya rather than at a central cantonment was a considered choice. The Northeast is the physical junction between South Asia and Southeast Asia. For years, this geography has been acknowledged in policy documents without being translated into something tangible. PRAGATI makes it tangible. Vietnamese and Filipino soldiers training in the jungles of Meghalaya alongside their Nepali and Sri Lankan counterparts is not just symbolism; it is the Act East Policy translated into boots on the ground.

The Indian Ocean connects all of these nations in ways that their armies are not accustomed to thinking about. Challenges such as piracy, maritime terrorism, narco trafficking and insurgent financing networks affect many of these countries. A shared understanding of counter terrorism doctrine, built through two weeks of joint training, gives these armies a baseline they did not have before.

Atmanirbhar Bharat Finds A Regional Stage

On the final two days of the exercise, Indian defence companies and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) set up an exposition for all participating delegations. What was on display was a representative cross section of the progress made by India’s defence manufacturing sector. Unmanned aerial systems, counter drone equipment, robotic logistics platforms, AI enabled battlefield management tools, software defined radios and advanced surveillance systems were among the technologies showcased.

For most of the twelve participating armies, Western defence procurement comes with costs beyond the price tag. Political conditions, interoperability requirements linked to alliance structures and maintenance dependencies often create long term vulnerabilities. India’s offer is different. The equipment displayed at Umroi has been developed for and used in terrain conditions that closely resemble those faced by many of the participating armies.

The AK 203 rifle, jointly manufactured in India, is already in service with the Indian Army and was used throughout the exercise. Seeing equipment perform in realistic training conditions, handled by soldiers with whom foreign troops had spent two weeks training, is a far more persuasive demonstration than any exhibition hall presentation.

This is Atmanirbhar Bharat with a strategic logic attached to it. Defence self reliance was always going to mean more if it translated into regional relevance, and PRAGATI is where that translation begins. Training alongside Indian systems creates operational familiarity, lowering barriers to future defence cooperation and procurement.

India As A Net Security Provider

A net security provider is a country that contributes more to regional stability than it takes from it. It is the nation others call when something goes wrong, not because of obligation, but because it has the geography, capabilities and relationships needed to respond effectively.

India’s actions over the past two decades illustrate this role in concrete terms. Following the 2004 tsunami, Indian ships reached Sri Lanka through Operation Castor, the Maldives through Operation Castor and Indonesia through Operation Gambhir within hours. During Operation Maitri in 2015, Indian teams were among the first responders to Nepal’s devastating earthquake. Operation Sadbhav delivered relief assistance to Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos after Typhoon Yagi in 2024. Operation Rahat evacuated Nepali and Sri Lankan nationals from Yemen. Mission Sagar delivered medicines and essential supplies to the Maldives and Seychelles during the COVID pandemic. Operation Sagar Bandhu provided assistance to Sri Lanka following Cyclone Ditwah last year.

Every major country engages in some form of security cooperation. What distinguishes a net security provider is that the balance consistently runs in one direction. India is not building military bases or stationing troops across the region. Instead, it is helping partners build capacity, training coast guards, linking surveillance networks, responding to emergencies and now providing a joint training platform through PRAGATI.

The relationship does not create dependence. It creates capability.

By hosting twelve armies simultaneously, putting them through a joint programme and sharing operational expertise gained from years of counter insurgency experience in difficult terrain, India is demonstrating its growing ability to shape regional security. Through the exercise, regional armies are not merely training together; they are developing the habits of information sharing that real joint operations require.

The Indian Army has demonstrated that it possesses the doctrine, terrain, technology and institutional confidence required to lead regional security cooperation on a significant scale. PRAGATI’s inaugural edition has set a standard and, more importantly, it has set a precedent.

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