Andaman and Nicobar Command

The Andaman and Nicobar Command  is a tri-service geographical command of the Indian Armed Forces, based at Port Blair in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Union Territory of India. It was created in 2001 to safeguard India's strategic interests in Southeast Asia and the Strait of Malacca by increasing rapid deployment of military assets in the region.

History
Previously there was a consideration to replace Fortress Commander, Andaman and Nicobar Islands (FORTAN) with a Far Eastern Naval Command (FENC). The previous plan to set up FENC was set in motion in 1995 following a closed-door meeting in Washington between then Indian prime minister, P V Narasimha Rao, and then US president, Bill Clinton. At the time, Pentagon officials made a formal request to the United Front coalition government in New Delhi to open a base in the islands.

The 750-km long Andaman and Nicobar archipelago comprise a chain of 572 islands, and is located about 1200 km from mainland India, but is merely 90 km from Indonesia and 50 km from Myanmar. An Indian command in the islands would counter any threat from China, which was reported to have set up surveillance posts in Myanmar's Coco Islands, 40 km off the northern tip of the Andamans. An Indian armed forces command at Andaman and Nicobar Islands would help in to prevent smuggling, piracy, drug and gun trafficking, poaching and illegal immigration in the region and especially in the Malacca Strait. The A&NC would also be in a position to assist the multinational Malacca Straits Security Initiative, aimed at curbing threats in the Malacca Straits.

The Group of Ministers' (GoM) report on Reforming the National Security System recommended the replacement of the FORTAN, under the Indian Navy, with a Joint Andaman and Nicobar Command which will control the assets of the tri-services and the Coast Guard on the islands. The GoM had recommended that the Commander of this Joint Command would report to the proposed Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). The Andaman and Nicobar Command was in place by the end of September 2001.

Force structure
The Andaman and Nicobar Command is commanded by three-star ranked officer (rank of Lieutenant General of the Indian Army or equivalent) who reports directly to Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee in New Delhi.

As of 2011, these were 13 navy ships based in Post Blair under the A&N Command. Naval vessels under the command may include Trinkat-class patrol vessel, Mk.3 LCU vessels, Polnochny-C/D class amphibious warfare vessels and the SDB Mk.3 large patrol craft. Do-228-101 maritime patrol craft, operating from airfields at Port Blair, Car Nicobar, Campbell Bay and Diglipur maintain surveillance over the sea areas and approaches. The Andaman & Nicobar region of the Indian Coast Guard also falls under the purview of the command. The command provides logistical and administrative support to naval ships which are sent on deployment to East Asia and the Pacific Ocean.

In July 2012, the navy commissioned INS Baaz, a naval air station which is located 300 nautical miles south of Port Blair and is the southernmost air station of the Indian Armed Forces. The naval port in Port Blair base amphibious platforms, offshore patrol vessels (OPV) and fast attack crafts (FAC).

In 2013, the navy proposed to station a nuclear submarine and a landing deck platform at the islands in the future, and the Indian Air Force has decided to station Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighters on the islands along with increasing the number of operational airfields. The 108 Infantry Brigade of the Indian Army, which includes the 21 Bihar, is deployed to the A&N Command. This is planned to be increased by deploying a division size force under the command.