By Smartencyclopedia News Desk with BBC

Agalega, Mauritius – Arnaud Poulay never imagined he’d be leaving his beloved island of Agalega. But this year, the 44-year-old handyman and reggae musician packed his bags, heartbroken over what he calls the “militarization” of his home in the Indian Ocean.

Until recently, Agalega was an isolated paradise, inhabited by just 350 people who fished and cultivated coconuts. The rest of their supplies were brought by ship only four times a year from the Mauritian capital, 1,100 kilometers to the south. An airstrip was used only for emergencies, and the pace of life was quiet.

However, in 2015, a new deal between Mauritius and India began to change the island’s future. The agreement allowed India to construct a 3,000-meter runway and a large jetty as part of the two nations’ shared security interests. Now, many Agalegans worry these installations may signal a deeper Indian military presence on their island.

“I Had to Leave”

“I love my island, and my island loves me,” Poulay said, explaining his decision to depart after years of vocal opposition to the project. The recent construction, he says, risks transforming Agalega from a peaceful home to a strategic military outpost.

Agalega, comprised of two small islands covering just 25 square kilometers, sits in a key location in the southwest Indian Ocean, making it ideal for maritime surveillance. A comparison of satellite images from 2019 and July of this year reveals striking changes to the landscape, including the clearing of extensive palm groves to make way for the massive runway.

New Infrastructure and Rising Concerns

Two large buildings, each 60 meters wide, now stand on the north island’s airstrip. According to Samuel Bashfield, a PhD scholar at the Australian National University, at least one of these buildings appears to be a hangar suitable for the Indian Navy’s P-8I aircraft, which is a Boeing 737 adapted for submarine hunting and maritime monitoring. Local residents have already captured photos of the aircraft on the airstrip, adding to concerns about the island’s evolving role.

A new jetty, extending northwest into the ocean, may be intended for Indian patrol vessels, alongside the regular supply ship for the island. Bashfield suggests that with each new satellite image, a clearer picture of Agalega’s role in Indian Ocean security is emerging.

“A Surveillance Station”

The International Institute for Strategic Studies has described the facility as a “surveillance station,” suggesting that it likely includes a coastal radar surveillance system similar to Indian-built installations elsewhere in Mauritius. However, the Indian government has been largely silent on the matter, referring only to prior statements by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has called India and Mauritius “natural partners” in maritime security.

Since the 1970s, India has maintained close defense ties with Mauritius. Key security officials within Mauritius, including the national security advisor and coastguard chief, are Indians on loan from India’s intelligence and military services. While India and Mauritius insist the new infrastructure supports “capacity building,” some islanders fear Agalega’s transformation is a strategic maneuver in response to China’s growing influence in the Indian Ocean.

The Shadow of Chagos

Agalegans are increasingly voicing concerns over how the new installations are affecting their lives. Some palm-fringed beaches have been closed off, and there are rumors that the village of La Fourche, where ten families live, may be displaced by the growing infrastructure.

“It will become a restricted area completely for Indians,” warns Laval Soopramanien, president of the Association of Friends of Agalega. He likens Agalega’s situation to that of the Chagos Archipelago, where inhabitants were forcibly removed in the 1960s to make way for a U.S. military base.

Agalegan residents like Billy Henri, 26, whose mother was expelled from the Chagos Islands, fear history may repeat itself. “My mother lost her island,” he says. “My father will be the next.”

A Strategic Outpost or Invasion of Paradise?

For many, India’s expanding presence on Agalega is another piece in the puzzle of shifting power in the Indian Ocean, with small island nations facing pressure to allow larger powers a foothold. Whether Agalega will indeed evolve into a strategic listening post or remain a shared security asset for Mauritius and India remains uncertain, but the sentiment among some islanders is clear: they fear their quiet home may become the front line in a regional chess game.