Maritime Security Current Affairs for UPSC

The Indian Navy has commissioned INS Nipun, the second indigenous Nistar-class Diving Support Vessel (DSV), at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai. Built by Hindustan Shipyard Limited, the specialised vessel strengthens India's ability to conduct sustained deep-sea diving, underwater intervention, salvage and submarine-rescue missions. Together with INS Nistar and India's two Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicles, INS Nipun creates a more resilient two-seaboard underwater rescue architecture and supports India's ambition to emerge as a dependable submarine-rescue partner in the Indian Ocean Region.

The Indian Navy is set to commission Mahendragiri (F38), its sixth indigenous Project 17A stealth frigate, at Visakhapatnam. Designed by the Navy’s Warship Design Bureau and built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd, the warship highlights India’s shift from a “buyer’s navy” to a “builder’s navy” and strengthens India’s maritime capability in the Indo-Pacific.

India hosted the 11th Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting at Hyderabad House, New Delhi, on 26 May 2026, chaired by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar with the foreign ministers of the United States, Australia and Japan. The meeting produced concrete deliverables — a maritime surveillance initiative, a critical minerals framework, an energy security initiative and the Quad's first joint infrastructure project (a port in Fiji). This article explains what the Quad is, the Indo-Pacific concept, the grouping's full history and evolution, the 2026 outcomes, each member's strategic objectives, China's opposition, related architectures like AUKUS, Malabar and IPEF, and the way ahead.