Military Exercise 'Pragati 2026' Concludes in Meghalaya With Participation From 13 Nations

PTI, May 30, 2026, Umroi (Meghalaya): Armies of 13 countries came together in Meghalaya's Umroi for the maiden multilateral military exercise 'Pragati 2026', which concluded on Saturday with a focus on countering insurgency and building mutual trust among the nations in the Indian Ocean region, officials said.

Over 400 soldiers, including around 20 women, from Bhutan, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and India slithered down from helicopters, detected IEDs along routes and climbed down rocky walls during the two-week exercise, they said.

Vice-Chief of the Indian Army, Lt Gen Dhiraj Seth, was present at the closing ceremony, which was attended by six vice-chiefs and more than 40 senior military officials from the participating nations.

Lt Gen Seth engaged in bilateral interactions aimed at strengthening defence cooperation and military-to-military relations.

Detailed discussions on how to incorporate niche technologies and the effect of these on the tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) were held during the two-week-long programme.

"Pragati was a mega exercise in the serene environment of Umroi in Meghalaya. We conducted various specialised drills and procedures, including rock craft, special heliborne operations and tactical situations," said Brig Mayur Shekatkar, the chief coordinator for the programme.