Vizag military harbour (Andhra Pradesh-NE India)

The city was so important during times of war that the Indian government decided to set up the Eastern Naval Command, overlooking the more populous Chennai and Kolkata, and developed Visakhapatnam during that period. 

The establishment of the E.N.C. soon after the construction of the ship building yard firmly secured Visakhapatnam's place in the annals of the Indian Navy. Some of the defence related establishments are N.S.T.L. (Naval Science and Technology Laboratories), which is responsible for the development and testing of warship technology, equipment and weapons and Bharat Dynamics Ltd is coming up for manufacturing heavy and light weight torpedoes. The navy also has a naval dockyard [started in 1949] in the city where recently India's first Nuclear Submarine was launched. The navy has plans to set up submarine base in the city at the alternate ENC base in Rambilli near Visakhapatnam.

The Navy is also constructing a second base as the current base is overpopulated and not sufficient to meet the needs of the E.N.C. Despite its importance, the Naval establishment has become a hindrance for the development of Visakhapatnam. The harbour is not open to the general public for reasons of security, while in Mumbai and Kochi, the entire port along with Naval docks are opened for boating and tourism.

Visakhapatnam is surrounded on three sides by the overlapping mountain ranges, and the southeastern city is safeguarded by the Bay of Bengal. Visakhapatnam is far away from any international border, both land and sea, making it the choice for strategic placement of the headquarters of the eastern naval command.