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After 'Operation Cactus' in 1988, India extended extensive security cooperation to:
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Answer: Option D — Maldives
Detailed Solution
"Operation Cactus" was a military operation by India in November 1988 to defeat an attempted coup against the government of the Maldives.
About Operation Cactus:
On 3 November 1988, a group of Maldivians led by businessman Abdullah Luthufi, along with about 80 armed mercenaries of the "People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam" (PLOTE), a Sri Lankan Tamil militant group, attacked the capital, Male, to overthrow President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
President Gayoom requested urgent military help from India and other countries.
India responded within hours, on the orders of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
Paratroopers of the Indian Army's 50th Independent Parachute Brigade were flown by Indian Air Force aircraft (Il-76) from Agra to Hulhule Airport near Male, about 2,000 km away.
The Indian troops secured the airport and the capital, and rescued President Gayoom, within hours of landing.
Some mercenaries tried to escape on a hijacked ship with hostages; the Indian Navy frigates INS Godavari and INS Betwa intercepted the ship, and the hostages were rescued.
The coup failed completely. The operation was praised internationally, including by the USA and the UK, as a quick and successful intervention.
India-Maldives security cooperation:
India is often called the "first responder" in crises in the Maldives, for example:
- After the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.
- During the Male water crisis (December 2014), when India sent drinking water ("Operation Neer").
- During the COVID-19 pandemic, with vaccines and medical help.
- India has helped the Maldives with coastal radar systems, patrol vessels, aircraft and training of its security forces.
- "Ekuverin" is a joint military exercise between India and the Maldives; "Dosti" is a trilateral coast guard exercise of India, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.
- India's "Neighbourhood First" policy and "SAGAR" (Security and Growth for All in the Region, 2015) vision guide these relations; SAGAR was expanded as "MAHASAGAR" in 2025.
About the Maldives:
- It is an archipelago of about 1,192 coral islands in the Indian Ocean.
- Its capital is Male, and its currency is the Rufiyaa.
- It is the lowest-lying country in the world, and very vulnerable to sea-level rise.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Sri Lanka received the IPKF (1987-90), not Operation Cactus.
- ✗Mauritius has close defence ties with India, such as the Agalega island facilities.
- ✗Seychelles has defence cooperation with India, including the Assumption Island project.
Quick tip
Remember: Operation Cactus = November 1988, India foiled a coup in the Maldives (President Gayoom; PLOTE mercenaries; Rajiv Gandhi); Operation Neer = water for Male (2014); India-Maldives exercise = Ekuverin.
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This question tests your understanding of Defence Technology & Missiles, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
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