Umroi, Meghalaya
The multinational military exercise PRAGATI 2026, currently underway at the strategically significant Umroi Military Station in Meghalaya, has emerged as a major platform for enhancing military interoperability and strengthening defence partnerships among regional nations. Hosted by the Indian Army, the exercise reflects India’s expanding role in promoting collaborative security frameworks across the Indo-Pacific and Indian Ocean regions.
PRAGATI, an acronym for Partnership of Regional Armies for Growth and Transformation in the Indian Ocean Region, has brought together military contingents from twelve friendly countries: Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Seychelles, Sri Lanka and Vietnam alongside Indian Army personnel. The exercise has been designed around the principles of equality, mutual respect and professional military cooperation.
The ongoing exercise is focused primarily on counter-terrorism operations in semi-mountainous and dense jungle environments, conditions that mirror operational realities faced by many participating countries. Meghalaya’s challenging terrain and established military training infrastructure provide an ideal setting for realistic combat simulations and multinational operational coordination.
The participating troops are undergoing an intensive schedule involving joint planning exercises, tactical manoeuvres and coordinated field operations. Training activities include jungle warfare techniques, room intervention drills, casualty evacuation procedures, fire-and-move tactics, heliborne insertion operations and rapid response missions. Soldiers from different armies are also sharing operational experiences and best practices developed through their respective national security environments.
A key objective of the exercise is to build seamless operational compatibility among participating forces during future multinational missions, particularly in counter-terrorism operations, peace support activities and humanitarian assistance scenarios. Military planners view such exercises as increasingly important in an evolving security landscape where transnational threats demand coordinated responses beyond national boundaries.
The exercise is expected to culminate in a high-intensity validation phase involving continuous multinational operations aimed at testing endurance, decision-making, command coordination and battlefield adaptability under simulated operational stress.
Beyond tactical outcomes, Exercise PRAGATI 2026 is expected to generate broader strategic dividends by deepening military-to-military engagement, building trust among regional partners and reinforcing a shared commitment toward peace, stability and collective security across the wider Indo-Pacific region.
contact: drrajeshjauhri@gmail.com
Dr Rajesh Jauhri is a Journalist with an experience of over 25 years in Indian and foreign media, a Social Scientist, an Ac-complished Author, a Political & Strategic Analyst, a Marksman (Rifle & Pistol), an Orator, a Thinker and an Educationist. He holds a Ph.D. degree on “Impact of colonial heritage on Indian police”. He runs an NGO dedicated to the social and eco-nomic uplift of tribal communities in MP and two decades back, he established a school in a village of Indore district, providing education and moral values to children belonging to underprivileged and minority families. Has received multiple awards in various fields.
