The present book attempts to elucidate India’s emerging approach towards the Indian Ocean in the context of the country’s rise as a major global actor in the region. The thrust areas of the book are: (a) Regional history and politics and India’s position therein (b) Role of the Indian Diaspora (c) India’s role in the maritime trade (d) India’s stakes involved in the traditional and non-traditional security threats (maritime security, energy issues, environmental security, human security etc) in the region. The impetus for editing this book came from the papers presented in the national organized jointly by the Department of Political science and History, The Bhawanipur Education Society College and IAAPS (Indian Association for the Asian and Pacific Studies), Kolkata. There were a host of high quality papers presented by the academicians and researchers and it was thought if they could be compiled to bring a conceptual clarity on the topic under consideration