Dipak Kurmi
India’s sweeping tri-theatre military mobilisation during October and November 2025 marked a decisive turning point in the nation’s defence trajectory, representing not merely a series of routine strategic drills but a signal of a dramatically evolving security doctrine shaped by the imperatives of an increasingly adversarial neighbourhood. Conducted under the codenames Astra Shakti, Trishul, and Poorvi Prachanda Prahar, these simultaneous exercises spanned the full breadth of India’s northern, western, and eastern frontiers and projected an unmistakable message: India has stepped into a new era where deterrence is no longer rooted in caution but in formidable, integrated, multi-domain readiness. Coming at a moment of heightened Sino-Pakistani collaboration, rising instability in Bangladesh, and sustained pressure along the Line of Actual Control, the exercises marked the clearest articulation yet of a “no-nonsense” military posture in which India demonstrates the capability to counter multiple threats at once, without compromising on either strategic depth or operational precision.
The timing, scale, and geographical deployment of these exercises were collectively designed to communicate layered messages to China, Pakistan, and emerging threats in Bangladesh. Astra Shakti addressed China’s aggressive manoeuvres in Ladakh; Trishul countered Pakistan’s militarisation near Sir Creek while validating India’s amphibious and maritime assault capabilities; and Poorvi Prachanda Prahar responded to intelligence reports of a deepening Bangladesh-China-Pakistan nexus positioned alarmingly close to the vulnerable Siliguri Corridor. Unlike past decades when Indian responses were often fragmented and theatre-specific, these exercises showcased unprecedented operational integration, demonstrating India’s maturing joint warfighting doctrine in which the Army, Navy, and Air Force operate as a unified organism rather than siloed entities. This shift from compartmentalised defence to holistic multi-domain warfare marks India’s transition into a military power capable of sustaining pressure on multiple adversaries simultaneously.
Astra Shakti unfolded in the harsh, high-altitude expanses of Ladakh where India has historically displayed unmatched expertise in Himalayan warfare—a term that entered military vocabulary because Indian forces fought at altitudes Western militaries once deemed impossible. The exercise incorporated long-range precision artillery strikes, swarm drone assaults, counter-drone systems, and commando operations executed in near-arctic conditions, establishing India’s technological and tactical superiority in one of the world’s most formidable battlegrounds. Observed by Lieutenant General Pratik Sharma, the drill reinforced India’s deep experience with high-altitude mechanised warfare dating back to the 1947–48 conflict when Indian forces transported tanks to elevations surpassing eleven thousand five hundred seventy-five feet. The integration of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police into operational frameworks demonstrated an evolving model in which paramilitary forces are no longer auxiliary actors but key contributors to a unified Himalayan defence doctrine designed to outpace China’s increasing militarisation across the Line of Actual Control.
Trishul transformed India’s western theatre into a multidimensional battlespace stretching from Sir Creek and the Rann of Kutch to the northern Arabian Sea, testing India’s joint capabilities across land, air, sea, cyber, and space domains. With over twenty warships, forty fighter jets including Rafales and Sukhoi-30MKIs, amphibious brigades, T-90 Bhishma tanks, coastal defence systems, and fifty thousand personnel, the exercise showcased the synergy of Western Naval Command, Southern Command, and the Air Force’s South Western Command in real combat scenarios. The geopolitical weight of operations around Sir Creek was unmistakable. As Pakistan accelerated construction of new bunkers and surveillance infrastructure in the estuary, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh delivered a stern warning in Bhuj that any Pakistani misadventure would trigger a response severe enough to alter both history and geography, invoking India’s ability to threaten Pakistan’s heartland including the strategic city of Karachi. The inauguration of the Tidal Independent Berthing Facility and the Joint Control Centre underscored India’s commitment to strengthening maritime vigilance, signalling that India’s western flank is fortified against both traditional and hybrid threats originating from Pakistan’s military establishment.
Poorvi Prachanda Prahar, conducted across Arunachal Pradesh’s high-altitude landscapes and the critically important Siliguri Corridor, confronted the most volatile and rapidly shifting security dynamics India faces today. The exercise brought together Special Forces, MARCOS, Garud commandos, the Bhairav Battalion, and the Arunachal Scouts in joint operations featuring advanced night-enabled first-person-view drones, swarm technologies, electromagnetic-spectrum-enabled UAVs, and integrated firepower from manoeuvre units, attack helicopters, and the DIVYASTRA composite battery. Intelligence reports in late 2025 exposed alarming collaborations between Pakistan’s ISI, Pakistan-backed terror groups, and Chinese elements operating from within Bangladesh. These groups were reportedly establishing training camps and facilitating narco-terror networks under the interim government of Muhammad Yunus, which analysts believe enjoys backing from Jamaat-e-Islami. Bangladesh’s infrastructural expansion, including the revival of the Lalmonirhat airstrip barely twenty kilometres from India and near the narrow Siliguri Corridor, added to India’s strategic anxieties because dual-use facilities in hostile alignment pose direct risks to the only land link between India’s mainland and its Northeast.
The vulnerability of the Siliguri Corridor, a twenty-two kilometre stretch flanked by Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and China’s Chumbi Valley, remains one of India’s deepest strategic concerns. A single hostile interdiction could sever the Northeast, isolating millions and crippling essential military and civilian infrastructure. India has therefore deployed multi-layered defences including Rafale aircraft armed with Meteor and SCALP missiles at Hashimara, BrahMos batteries positioned for rapid strikes, S-400 air defence systems offering four-hundred-kilometre engagement envelopes, and a network of satellite, drone, and cyber surveillance mechanisms. Former Assam Rifles Director General Lieutenant General Shokin Chauhan warned that any attempt by Bangladesh or its external partners to threaten the corridor would prompt India to expand its control from twenty-two kilometres to seventy kilometres within seventy-two hours, illustrating the seriousness with which India views its northeastern lifeline and its readiness to escalate militarily if deterrence fails.
India’s tri-exercise mobilisation must also be viewed within the broader context of evolving warfare, where conventional battles intersect with cyberattacks, satellite disruptions, information warfare, and autonomous systems. The drills validated India’s growing competence in network-centric operations through real-time data-sharing systems that integrate all three services and support rapid, coordinated responses. India’s investments in indigenous defence manufacturing—from drones and missile platforms to encrypted communication systems—bolstered the exercises, demonstrating an increasing degree of technological sovereignty. These capabilities are being strengthened further through partnerships with nations like the United States, France, Japan, and Australia, reinforcing India’s role as a central pillar of Indo-Pacific security architecture at a time when regional stability hinges on balancing China’s expansionism.
These exercises also underscored the importance of civil–military synergy in modern conflict environments. Coordination with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police, the Border Security Force, coastal security agencies, and state authorities helped refine protocols for protecting critical infrastructure, sustaining logistical supply lines, managing civilian evacuation routes, and countering disinformation campaigns. Such integration reflects global military thinking, where the boundaries between combat zones and civilian spheres continue to blur, making inter-agency cooperation not merely desirable but indispensable for national resilience during crises.
Beyond the tactical realm, the exercises significantly strengthened morale, discipline, and experiential expertise across India’s military ranks. Tens of thousands of soldiers, sailors, and air personnel gained firsthand exposure to the complexities of multi-front operational environments, enhancing institutional readiness in ways theoretical training cannot replicate. These experiences diffuse through the chain of command, enriching tactical understanding and sharpening strategic instincts across the armed forces. Moreover, the public displays of capability—from the Brahmaputra air show marking the Indian Air Force’s ninety-third anniversary to static exhibitions of indigenously developed platforms—cultivated national confidence and reinforced public support for defence modernisation.
Critics argue that such large-scale exercises risk heightening tensions with neighbouring states. Yet India’s strategic reasoning aligns with the principle that peace endures only when backed by credible power. Decades of asymmetric provocations from Pakistan and opportunistic aggression from China have repeatedly exploited perceived Indian restraint. By demonstrating multi-front readiness, India establishes clear red lines and discourages miscalculations that often lead to conflict escalation. The comprehensive, simultaneous nature of Astra Shakti, Trishul, and Poorvi Prachanda Prahar therefore serves as a stabilising force in an increasingly unpredictable region, signalling that India is prepared, capable, and unwilling to tolerate coercion.
The triad of exercises represents a watershed moment in India’s strategic evolution. They reflect a nation that has moved beyond episodic preparedness toward a robust doctrine of continuous readiness, where deterrence is rooted in technological advancement, doctrinal sophistication, operational integration, and political clarity. As India navigates an era defined by volatile geopolitical alignments, cyber vulnerabilities, hybrid threats, and multi-front challenges, the message emerging from Astra Shakti, Trishul, and Poorvi Prachanda Prahar is unequivocal: India has entered a phase where defence is not an act of reaction but an assertion of strength, capability, and strategic foresight. In doing so, the exercises have not only reshaped regional security dynamics but have positioned India as a formidable military power prepared to defend its territorial integrity and strategic interests across every domain and frontier in the decades to come.
(The writer can be reached at dipakkurmiglpltd@gmail.com)
