NEW DELHI – Six years after Cyclone Diane carved a trail of devastation across Madagascar, the memory of that storm remains intertwined with another story—the day the Indian Navy arrived as the region’s first responder. When Madagascar’s call for help echoed across the ocean, India mobilized rapidly, launching Operation Vanilla and reshaping the trajectory of its relations with the island nation. What began as a humanitarian mission would soon evolve into a defining chapter in India’s naval diplomacy in the southwest Indian Ocean.
A Mission That Redefined Speed and Intent
When Airavat reached northern Madagascar, its crew fanned out with desperately needed supplies: tents, blankets, dry rations, and medical kits. A naval medical team began treating the injured in improvised camps, often working shoulder to shoulder with local officials.
What set the mission apart wasn’t its scale but its immediacy. India had demonstrated that it could act as a first responder without waiting for multinational coordination or donor conferences. For many Malagasy communities, the operation became a rare example of humanitarian efficiency in a moment of national trauma.
SAGAR Moves From Policy to Practice
In the months that followed, New Delhi’s SAGAR doctrine—Security and Growth for All in the Region—shifted from a strategic slogan to an operational framework visible across Madagascar’s coastline. In March 2021, India dispatched the landing ship INS Shardul carrying 600 tonnes of rice for flood victims.
From Aid Provider to Security Partner
The relationship deepened in ways that surprised regional observers. In March 2021, Malagasy naval personnel joined Indian sailors for a coordinated patrol of Madagascar’s Exclusive Economic Zone. The message was subtle but unmistakable: Madagascar’s waters—and the fisheries that sustain thousands—would no longer be left vulnerable to illegal foreign fleets.
Training soon followed. An Indian Navy Mobile Training Team spent weeks on the ground, instructing Malagasy special forces in coastal defence, boarding operations, and maritime interdiction. The emphasis was deliberately placed on building local capability rather than dependence.
An Expanding Web of Maritime Engagements
By 2023 and 2024, Indian naval visits had become part of the region’s diplomatic rhythm. Ships such as INS Tir and Coast Guard vessel Sarathi made port calls that combined technical exchanges with community outreach. When INS Trishul berthed in Toamasina, its arrival coincided with International Day of Yoga celebrations—a soft-power complement to hard-security cooperation.
Exercises grew more ambitious, too. INS Sumedha’s visit included a planned maritime partnership drill with Malagasy forces—an exercise that, while unpublicized, carried significant signaling value. By April 2025, Madagascar participated in Africa–India maritime engagement exercises co-hosted by India and Tanzania, underscoring the island’s rising role in Western Indian Ocean security.
A Maturing Partnership
The 2024 summit between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Andry Rajoelina cemented the political layer of the relationship. What had begun as crisis relief was by now a broad-spectrum partnership spanning food security, port cooperation, military training, and regional maritime stability. The presence of India’s Minister of State for Defense at Madagascar’s Independence Day celebrations last June was more than a gesture of goodwill. It was a statement of ownership over a shared regional vision.
Operation Vanilla: A Template for the Region
Operation Vanilla proved that in the 21st century, the most durable alliances aren’t signed in boardrooms; they are forged in the mud of a flood zone. For India, a mission that started with humanitarian aid has ended with a strategic anchor that may well define the security of these waters for the next decade.
In a part of the world where climate shocks meet security vulnerabilities, India’s experience in Madagascar suggests that influence need not be declared loudly. Sometimes it arrives quietly, anchored by empathy in a moment of crisis and strengthened, year after year, by the choice to remain a reliable neighbor.
Ashu Mann
Ashu Mann is an Associate Fellow at the Centre for Land Warfare Studies. He was awarded the Vice Chief of the Army Staff Commendation card on Army Day 2025. He is pursuing a PhD in Defence and Strategic Studies. His research focuses include India-China territorial dispute, great power rivalry, and Chinese foreign policy.
