India’s National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) is reportedly preparing to establish a highly classified Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) generation and collection facility in the Chagos Archipelago, strategically located in the central Indian Ocean. The move underscores India’s expanding intelligence and surveillance footprint across critical maritime corridors frequented by rival navies, including those of China and Pakistan.

India has reached a key agreement with the government of Mauritius to establish a satellite tracking and monitoring station in the Chagos Archipelago, according to reports by The Economic Times and The Times of India.

The upcoming installation, described as possessing a high “Priority of Interest” (PoI), will serve as a vital component in India’s maritime domain awareness architecture. Equipped with next-generation antenna arrays, advanced electronic interceptors, and encryption-breaking systems, the station is designed to capture and decode encrypted transmissions from surface combatants, submarines, and unmanned maritime vehicles operating in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

Intelligence officials suggest that the station will be interconnected with India’s wider strategic monitoring network, integrating feeds from Andaman & Nicobar Command, Mauritius, Seychelles, and the Indian mainland. This will enable seamless data fusion and real-time analysis of adversary movements, particularly within chokepoints such as the Mozambique Channel and Diego Garcia’s operational periphery.

The facility’s establishment aligns with New Delhi’s long-term strategy to develop sovereign intelligence-gathering capabilities independent of foreign partners. Analysts believe the Chagos hub will enhance interception range, strengthen satellite relay bandwidth, and provide early warning insights against hostile oceanic activity—especially Chinese PLAN submarine deployments or Pakistani naval patrol activity near India’s extended maritime influence zone.

Sources indicate that the SIGINT complex may also house deep-space communication arrays to support NTRO’s overlapping missions in spaceborne reconnaissance, including coordination with Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) assets and ISRO’s electronic intelligence (ELINT) satellites. The Chagos facility, once operational, will significantly augment India’s real-time situational awareness across the Indo-Oceanic strategic theatre, transforming NTRO’s regional reach into one of the most sophisticated maritime intelligence frameworks in Asia.

The planned installation is described as a facility to track satellites and “monitor the region,” a phrase typically associated with signals intelligence (SIGINT) operations.

Although the precise site for this installation has not yet been confirmed, reports suggest it may be located near the existing US-UK military base on Diego Garcia. Details on the logistical arrangements for the new facility remain unclear.

Indian ambitions appear to mirror the model of the surveillance and logistics base already created on Mauritius’ Agaléga Island, which functions under Indian operational control despite official denials.

Mauritius, whose economy relies significantly on Indian investment and support, continues to deepen its security cooperation with New Delhi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during the agreement’s announcement, reaffirmed India’s longstanding support for the decolonisation of the Chagos Islands, declaring that India and Mauritius are “two nations with one destiny.”

The agreement, reached during a recent eight-day visit to New Delhi by Mauritian Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam, also permits Indian naval vessels to conduct hydrographic surveys across the Chagos Archipelago.

These surveys are crucial for India’s Arihant-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, which are expected to operate in the area. India currently fields INS Arihant (S2), INS Arighaat (S3), and INS Aridhaman (S4), with a fourth submarine recently launched.

Additionally, the deal includes provisions for refitting a Mauritius Coast Guard vessel for patrol duties in Chagos waters and up to $680 million in Indian aid. A portion of this funding is earmarked for “development of the Chagos Marine Protected Area,” signalling a shift from the previous British policy of ecological preservation without human activity.

The sovereignty handover agreement between Mauritius and the United Kingdom was formally signed on 25 May 2025, though it still awaits full ratification. Under the terms of the settlement, the United States will continue operating its Diego Garcia Naval Support Facility under a lease-back arrangement after the UK winds down the British Indian Ocean Territory administration.

Meanwhile, political controversy has erupted in London over the agreement. Attorney General Lord Hermer, a key proponent of the handover, and National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell, the UK’s lead negotiator, are both under scrutiny following the collapse of a high-profile espionage case involving two British nationals accused of spying for China.

The case was reportedly dropped to avoid diplomatic friction with Beijing, prompting severe criticism.

Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo sharply condemned Powell’s handling of the issue, labelling him “strategically an absolute fool” and warning that Mauritius’s close relationship with China could enable the expansion of Chinese influence into Diego Garcia.

Opposition parties in Britain have vowed to overturn the deal if they come to power, citing the risk of losing a critical Western strategic foothold in the Indian Ocean.

IDN (With Agency Inputs)