Key Terms & Concepts — UPSC Mains
SAGAR Doctrine
"India's maritime vision for the Indian Ocean Region emphasising Security and Growth for All in the Region"
SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) is India's strategic framework for the Indian Ocean Region, enunciated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March 2015 during his visit to Mauritius. The doctrine articulates India's vision of positioning itself as a net security provider in the IOR, fostering cooperative maritime security, sustainable blue economy development, and rules-based order in the region. It encompasses five pillars: protecting India's maritime interests; deepening economic and security cooperation with neighbourhood maritime nations; collectively enforcing a peaceful, stable, and rules-based maritime order; sustainable development of the blue economy; and building capacity and maritime domain awareness among regional partners.
SAGAR is central to understanding India's maritime foreign policy and its bid for leadership in the Indian Ocean Region. It directly competes with China's growing presence in the IOR (through the String of Pearls strategy, BRI port projects, and PLA Navy deployments). For UPSC, SAGAR connects to GS2 (India's foreign policy, neighbourhood policy) and GS3 (maritime security, blue economy). It is the conceptual foundation for India's island diplomacy with SAARC and ASEAN partners, coast guard cooperation, and hydrography support to smaller IOR states.
- 1 Announced by PM Modi in Mauritius in March 2015 — hence often called the 'Mauritius speech'
- 2 Full form: Security and Growth for All in the Region
- 3 Five pillars cover maritime security, blue economy, cooperative enforcement of rules-based order, capacity building, and bilateral economic cooperation
- 4 India positions itself as a 'net security provider' — first used officially under PM Manmohan Singh in 2013
- 5 Operationalised through Mission SAGAR (COVID relief 2020), MAHASAGAR initiative, and bilateral maritime exercises
- 6 Distinguishes India's cooperative approach from China's assertive BRI/String of Pearls maritime posture
- 7 Closely linked to India's Indo-Pacific vision and the Quad framework
Under SAGAR, India has provided hydrographic survey data to Sri Lanka and Maldives, deployed INS ships for humanitarian missions across the IOR, and set up coastal surveillance radar systems in partner island nations — all without demanding reciprocal concessions.