Exercise Sampriti, which saw the inaugural edition in Jorhat, Assam in 2009, is organised alternatingly by the two countries….reports Asian Lite News
The 11th edition of the India-Bangladesh joint military exercise Sampriti which facilitated synergy in the conduct of joint tactical operations concluded at Umroi, Meghalaya on Monday (October 16, 2023).
Exercise Sampriti, which saw the inaugural edition in Jorhat, Assam in 2009, is organised alternatingly by the two countries.
Besides promoting understanding & interoperability between the two armies, it further helped in strengthening the ties between India and Bangladesh, the Indian Army said in a post on social media platform X (formerlyTwitter).
An observer delegation group of both the nations witnessed final validation of the 14-day exercise, it said in a separate post.
About 350 personnel from both sides participated in Sampriti-XI. The Bangladesh contingent comprised 170 personnel, led by Commander of 52 Bangladesh Infantry Brigade, Brigadier General Mohammed Mafizul Islam Rashed. The lead unit from the Bangladesh Army side was 27 Bangladesh Infantry Regiment.
On the other hand, the Indian contingent mainly comprised troops from a battalion of Rajput Regiment. Brigadier SK Anand, Commander of a Mountain Brigade led the Indian contingent. The exercise also witnessed participation by personnel from diverse units such as artillery, engineers and other supporting arms and services from both sides.
Centered on the conduct of Sub-Conventional Operations as per Chapter VII of the UN mandate, Sampriti-XI included a Command Post Exercise (CPX) and a Field Training Exercise (FTX), culminating in a Validation Exercise.
Military ties between the two nations have grown manifold over the past several years.
Earlier this year, India and Bangladesh agreed to increase the complexity of their existing bilateral military exercises. The issue was discussed at the fifth Annual Defence Dialogue in Dhaka on August 28, 2023. Indian Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane, who was on a two-day visit to Bangladesh, co-chaired the meeting with his Bangladeshi counterpart, Principal Staff Officer, Armed Forces Division Lt Gen Waker-Uz-Zaman.
Incidentally, the Army Chiefs of both the sides have visited each others’ country this year. Bangladesh Army Chief General SM Shafiuddin Ahmed was in India on a three-day visit from April 27-29, 2023, to explore new avenues for enhancing India-Bangladesh defence relations.
This was followed by a visit to Bangladesh by Indian Army Chief General Manoj Pande on June 5-6, 2023. During the visit, which was aimed at improvimg the existing strong defence ties between India and Bangladesh, General Pande held extensive discussions with top military officers to discuss potential future areas of cooperation. (India News Network)
