‘Maru Jwala’ Drills in Rajasthan

• 12 Nov 2025

Why in News? 

The Indian Armed Forces conducted the ‘Maru Jwala’ phase of Operation Trishul on 11th November, 2025, in the Thar Desert of Rajasthan, as part of the country’s largest tri-services exercise. 

Key Points 

• Maru Jwala Exercise: 
• The exercise featured T-90 Bhishma tanks, precision missile launches, UAV surveillance, and live-fire drills, testing the Army–Air Force joint combat strategy for desert operations. 
• It demonstrated real-time coordination between land and air forces, validating the integrated theatre command approach. 
• Agadawa Air Strip: 
• The 3 km long Agadawa Air Strip, located on National Highway 925A in Barmer district, about 40 km from the Pakistan border, hosted emergency landing and take-off drills in this exercise involving Rafale, Tejas, and Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jets. 
• Originally inaugurated in September 2021, the strip is India’s first national highway-based emergency landing facility, built jointly by the Indian Air Force (IAF) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).