Examine the strategic significance of India's deepening partnership with Indian Ocean island states like Seychelles, Maldives, and Mauritius in the context of the SAGAR doctrine and China's expanding naval footprint in the IOR.

Q. Examine the strategic significance of India's deepening partnership with Indian Ocean island states like Seychelles, Maldives, and Mauritius in the context of the SAGAR doctrine and China's expanding naval footprint in the IOR. (15 marks, 250-350 words)

SAGAR — "Security and Growth for All in the Region" — was articulated during PM Modi's 2015 Indian Ocean island tour. His 2026 Seychelles visit, marking fifty years of diplomatic ties [1], shows the doctrine maturing from declaratory goodwill into a structured security-and-development architecture.

Geostrategic significance - Small island states command disproportionate maritime space: Seychelles' archipelago of ~115 islands straddles the Africa–Gulf–Asia sea lanes, while Maldives and Mauritius flank India's western and southern approaches [3]. - Partnership converts their Exclusive Economic Zones into shared surveillance space, extending India's maritime domain awareness far beyond its own coast.

SAGAR operationalised - Capacity-building, not basing: patrol vessels, Dornier aircraft, grant-funded refit of PS Zoroaster, and a Seychelles Hydrographic Unit to chart its EEZ [2][3]. - Exercise Lamitiye 2026 at the Seychelles Defence Academy was the first tri-services edition and the maiden Indian Navy participation, with INS Trikand conducting joint boarding drills with SCGS Le Vigilant [4][5]. - Minilateralism: Seychelles' elevation to full member of the Colombo Security Conclave widens the grouping from the Bay of Bengal into the western Indian Ocean [2]. - Development stake: a USD 175 million special economic package, a UPI MoU and space cooperation bind economics to security [1].

Strategic counterweight - Against China's growing naval and port-financing presence, India offers a grant-based, demand-driven and non-basing model that respects sovereignty — a decisive differentiator. - Yet limits persist: modest trade volumes, delivery delays, and domestic political churn in partner states periodically test continuity.

India's island diplomacy is thus less about balancing alone and more about becoming the region's preferred first responder and net security provider. Sustaining it requires timely project execution, deeper blue-economy partnership aligned with SDG-14, and institutionalising the CSC — converting the goodwill of golden jubilees into durable regional public goods.

(~320 words)

Sources: 1. Prime Minister attends the 50th Anniversary celebrations of Independence of Seychelles (MEA, June 2026) — 50 years of ties; USD 175 million package, UPI and space MoUs 2. India–Seychelles Joint Vision for Sustainability, Economic Growth and Security through Enhanced Linkages (PIB, 2026) — Colombo Security Conclave full membership, hydrography unit, PS Zoroaster refit 3. India–Seychelles Bilateral Relations Brief (MEA) — geography, defence assistance including patrol vessels and Dornier aircraft 4. Indian Contingent Departs for Seychelles for Joint Military "Exercise Lamitiye – 2026" (PIB) — first tri-services edition; biennial exercise since 2001 5. Indian Naval Ship Trikand Concludes Port Call at Port Victoria, Seychelles (PIB) — INS Trikand's joint boarding drills with SCGS Le Vigilant