The Indian Defense Forces recently concluded a large-scale joint training operation: Tri-Service Exercise (TSE-2025) ‘Trishul’. The Indian Navy spearheaded the exercise in close collaboration with the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force (IAF).
The comprehensive exercise took place from November 3 to 7 and covered Rajasthan, Gujarat and the North Arabian Sea. It clearly demonstrated India’s integrated operational capabilities. The Western Naval Command conducted the exercise in collaboration with the Army’s Southern Command and the IAF’s South Western Air Command.
Objectives and key participants
More than 30,000 workers participated in the five-day exercise. The military deployed significant resources. These included 20 to 25 surface and subsurface platforms, mainly amphibious vessels, along with more than 40 aircraft and numerous ground systems.
The primary objective was to strengthen operational synergy and refine common standard operating procedures (SOPs). This consistently confirmed the overall combat readiness of the forces.
Crucially, the Indian Coast Guard, Border Security Force (BSF) and other central agencies also participated. Their formal incorporation emphasized interagency coordination. This commitment demonstrates India’s focus on cohesion, self-reliance (Aatmanirbharta) and innovation in military operations.
An Indian Navy spokesperson on X detailed the scope of the exercise. He noted complex scenarios and synchronized operations across multiple domains. The exercise involved 20-25 naval surface and subsurface assets, including amphibious platforms. More than 40 IAF aircraft along with their associated ground assets and more than 30,000 military personnel also participated. The exercise covered three regions. The spokesman confirmed that the exercise strengthened operational synergy, integrated operations and validated common SOPs. The participation of the Coast Guard, BSF and other central agencies has further strengthened this essential inter-agency coordination.
High speed drills
Specific elements of the training included rapid combined arms operations. Air assets from the Thar Raptor Brigade worked closely with the mechanized formations of Sudarshan Chakra and Konark Corps to verify seamless joint capabilities in highly realistic battlefield conditions.
These integrated exercises were part of the ongoing desert exercises of the Southern Command, MaruJwala and Akhand Prahaar conducted across the three services under Exercise Trishul. The operations focused on refining and validating combined air and mechanized tactics, techniques and procedures (TTP), thereby ensuring increased coordination and combat effectiveness. The missions included a wide range of aviation roles, including surveillance and reconnaissance, special heliborne operations, rapid deployment of troops and close support maneuvers, emphasizing the technological synergy and united spirit between the participating formations.
