India’s Navy Day
December 4th is observed as the Navy Day of India. The Indian Navy is the marine arm of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Navy. The Navy organises a Beating Retreat ceremony on the eve of the Navy Day at the Gateway of India in Mumbai. The day is observed to promote the marine border security of India and also to encourage good relations with other countries through joint exercises, relief missions and humanitarian missions. December 4th is observed as the Navy Day to commemorate the Operation Trident which was carried out by the Navy during the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war. The Operation Trident saw the Indian Navy attacking the Karachi harbor. The fleets which left the Okha Port in Gujarat included the warships INS Veer, INS Nipat and INS Nirghat. The operation resulted in the destruction of 4 Pakistani vessels including the PNS Khaibar which was sunk. The Karachi harbor fuel fields were also destroyed. The Indian side sustained no damage during the operation.
