India has been one of the biggest contributors of troops to the UN Peacekeeping Operations all over the world because of the level of training of the officers and soldiers. (Express Photo) THE FOREIGN Training Node (FTN) of the Indian Army located at Aundh Military Station in Pune will host a multinational military exercise involving the Indian Army and armies of several African countries in March, Army officers said on Wednesday. The exercise will focus on Humanitarian Mine Assistance and United Nations Peacekeeping Operations.
The inaugural edition of the Africa-India Field Training Exercise, AFINDEX, was held at the FTN in March 2019. The inaugural exercise had seen participation of contingents from African nations Benin, Botswana, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe while the Indian Army was represented by a contingent of Maratha Light Infantry.
Army officials said that for the second edition of AFINDEX, which is scheduled to be held between March 21 and 30 this year, participation of 20 African countries is expected. Two coordination conferences of the stakeholder entities from Indian Army and African countries have already taken place while the third is slated to take place soon. This will be the first joint military exercise that the FTN will hold after the Covid-19 pandemic.
The aim of the exercise is to hone the skills of the participating defence forces in planning and conduct of Humanitarian Mine Assistance and Peace Keeping Operations under Chapter VII of UN Peacekeeping Operations charter. The exercise will focus on exchange of best practices between the participating nations, team building and tactical level operations in conduct of UN mandated tasks. The UN mandated tasks include establishment of new missions for UN peacekeeping forces, protection of civilians, nuances of standing combat deployment, convoy protection, patrolling aspects and aspects related to Humanitarian Mine Assistance.
India has been one of the biggest contributors of troops to the UN Peacekeeping Operations all over the world because of the level of training of the officers and soldiers.
On other hand, the Indian Army is considered as one of the expert agencies in the world in mine removal operations.
Some of the war-torn countries in Africa do face the problem of landmines and Unexploded Ordnance, often referred to as UXO. Joint exercise with India will benefit the participating countries greatly and the Indian Army will also learn from their experiences, officials said. The exercise is also being looked at as a key element of India’s diplomatic ties with the African countries.