By N. C. Bipindra

New Delhi: India’s armed forces have been conducting a series of large-scale military exercises across land, sea, and air to sharpen their combat readiness and test integrated warfare capabilities against evolving security threats.

The Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force have coordinated unprecedented levels of joint training this year — from the icy Himalayan frontiers to the vast Indian Ocean — showcasing a new era of tri-service and multi-domain military preparedness.

These exercises come amid a tense regional environment shaped by China’s growing assertiveness along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Pakistan’s continued support for cross-border terrorism, and rising maritime competition in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

Together, these war games underline India’s strategy of deterrence through preparedness, demonstrating that its armed forces can operate as one cohesive unit across diverse terrains and domains.

High-Altitude Power Projection: Exercise Prachand Prahaar

In March 2025, the Indian armed forces conducted Exercise Prachand Prahaar in the northern high-altitude areas under the Eastern Command. This tri-service exercise focused on coordinating land, air, and maritime assets in extreme mountainous terrain; the very environment where China continues to expand its military infrastructure.

The war game tested India’s ability to fight and win in a contested environment, integrating drones, precision strikes, satellite surveillance, and real-time intelligence.

The Army, Navy, and Air Force practiced synchronised operations under a unified command structure, validating India’s progress toward integrated theatre commands.

The message was clear: India is ready for any contingency along the northern borders. The outcome reinforced operational readiness, improved inter-service coordination, and demonstrated that India’s forces can rapidly deploy and sustain combat power in challenging altitudes.

Maritime Supremacy: TROPEX 25

Running from January to March 2025, TROPEX 25 — the Indian Navy’s Theatre-Level Operational Readiness Exercise — was the year’s most extensive maritime drill.

Involving units from the Army and Air Force, TROPEX covered the entire expanse of the Indian Ocean Region, including strategic island territories like the Andaman and Nicobar Command.

The exercise simulated high-end maritime conflict, testing anti-submarine warfare, carrier strike operations, amphibious landings, and electronic warfare in a multi-domain environment.

Against the backdrop of increasing Chinese naval activity and joint Pakistan-China manoeuvres in the Arabian Sea, TROPEX 25 reinforced India’s dominance over key sea lanes of communication.

For India, the message was unmistakable: it will remain the net security provider in the Indian Ocean. The drills demonstrated the Navy’s ability to project power, safeguard trade routes, and operate seamlessly with other services.

Western Deterrence: Exercise Trishul

In October–November 2025, India is staging Exercise Trishul, a massive tri-service combat drill along the western front bordering Pakistan. Conducted across the desert, coastal, and marshy sectors of Gujarat and Rajasthan, it was one of the largest coordinated operations involving the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

The exercise simulated full-spectrum warfare: from amphibious assaults and joint air operations to counter-drone warfare and rapid mobilization across diverse terrains. The inclusion of electronic and cyber warfare elements highlighted India’s focus on multi-domain operations.

The Western Command’s objective was to validate readiness against potential collusion between Pakistan and China while improving synergy between services. The exercise showcased India’s ability to conduct swift, integrated, and decisive operations across multiple fronts.

Preparing for Future Wars

Beyond these major drills, India’s Northern Command also conducted a futuristic exercise named Vidyut Vidhhwans, focusing on cyber, space, and electromagnetic warfare. This signalled a clear shift toward preparing for next-generation conflicts where the battlefields extend beyond land, sea, and air.

The Indian military’s emphasis on integrating emerging technologies — drones, artificial intelligence, satellite networks, and data fusion — indicates its transition from traditional defence posturing to modern multi-domain operations.

Theaterisation: The Immediate Goal

India’s push toward military theatreisation marks the most ambitious restructuring of its defence apparatus since Independence.

The concept aims to integrate the Indian Army, Navy, and Air Force under unified theatre commands to ensure seamless coordination in combat, improve resource efficiency, and enable faster, more decisive military responses.

Instead of the traditional service-specific silos, the proposed structure envisions theatre commands responsible for specific geographical areas or operational functions, such as the Northern, Western, Maritime, and Air Defence commands, with a single commander exercising operational control over assets from all three services.

This transformation, spearheaded by the Department of Military Affairs under the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan, seeks to prepare India for modern, multi-domain warfare spanning land, sea, air, space, and cyberspace.

The series of joint military exercises is aimed at achieving cohesion, coordination, and camaraderie among the personnel of the three armed forces.

The three services broadly support the goal of jointness but differ in approach and scope. The Indian Army, which operates across multiple borders, is largely in favour of theatreisation, viewing it as essential to coordinating responses along the China and Pakistan frontiers.

The Indian Navy supports integration in principle but stresses the need for flexible command structures to preserve maritime autonomy across the vast Indian Ocean Region.

The Indian Air Force (IAF), meanwhile, has voiced concerns about the division of its limited air assets among multiple theatre commands, arguing that air power must remain centrally controlled to retain flexibility and rapid redeployment capability.

Despite these differences, all three services agree that integration is inevitable for India’s future wars. The ongoing deliberations, simulation exercises, and evolving doctrines suggest that theatreisation will be a phased reform, balancing the need for unified command with the operational realities of each domain.

Transformative Nature of Military Exercises

The 2025 series of tri-service exercises marks a transformative phase in India’s defence strategy. They reflect not only preparedness against conventional threats from China and Pakistan but also adaptability to hybrid and asymmetric warfare.

By coordinating exercises like Prachand Prahaar, TROPEX 25, and Trishul, India has proven that its armed forces are evolving from isolated service commands to a unified war-fighting machine.

The outcome is a stronger deterrent posture, enhanced jointness, and a clear message to adversaries: India is fully capable of defending its borders, securing its seas, and dominating across all domains of warfare.

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