On Thursday, military officials and experts informed that Indian Navy will open a third air base in the far-off Andaman and Nicobar islands to beef up surveillance of Chinese ships and submarines entering the Indian Ocean through the nearby Malacca Straits. New Delhi has grown worried over the presence of China`s bigger navy in its neighbourhood and the network of commercial ports it is building in an arc stretching from Sri Lanka to Pakistan that India fears could become naval outposts. 

The navy official statement, state that Indian navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba will commission the new base, called INS Kohassa, about 300 km (180 miles) north of the archipelago’s capital, Port Blair. The Indian military has seized upon the Andamans that lie near the entrance to the Malacca Straits to counter the Chinese challenge, deploying ships and aircraft since Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014 promising a more muscular policy.

However, India and China both have been locked in a contest for influence, with New Delhi trying to push back against Beijing`s expansive diplomacy in the region. This week, Indian defence officials are due to hold talks with the defence minister of the Maldives, Mariya Ahmed Didi, where New Delhi is seeking to repair ties after the ouster of its pro-China leader in a presidential election last year.

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