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Commandant of the National Defence Academy, Vice Admiral Anil Jaggi, addressed a seminar titled "Advancing Underwater Domain Awareness Framework for India's Mahasagar Vision and its Realization," held by the Maritime Research Center (MRC) and the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA). Jaggi warned that China's ocean surveying fleet, consisting of approximately 64 active research and survey vessels, is not solely engaged in peaceful underwater data collection.

Beijing is also deploying autonomous underwater vehicles and underwater gliders for dubious activities, including those that could impact strategically important sea lanes and choke points in the Indian Ocean. Jaggi emphasized that these research activities pose a significant threat to India's security and defense, as the data collected could be used to plan the deployment of submarines and SSBNs by the People's Liberation Army Navy.

Another critical underwater threat, attributed to the vulnerability of undersea cables and critical infrastructure, was highlighted through the sabotage activities and damages in the Baltic Sea during the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Indian Navy is actively working on various projects and initiatives to enhance Underwater Domain Awareness (UDA), which Jaggi believes will become as essential as maintaining surface surveillance in the future.

Former Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh echoed Jaggi's concerns, stressing the importance of a seabed warfare strategy to protect critical undersea infrastructure, such as telecommunications cables, pipelines, and offshore installations, which are crucial for the country's economic and national security.