India along with 23 other nations will participate in a major Indian ocean-wide tsunami mock drill today and <span data-term="goog_2142412525" tabindex="0">tomorrow</span> which will involve evacuation of thousands of people from coastal areas in over half a dozen coastal states. An officials release said, the exercise, known as IOWave18, is being organised by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO, which coordinated the setting up of the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (IOTWMS) in the aftermath of December 2004 tsunami. <br />''<br />''<br />''The release further said, besides testing the SOPs and  communication links at all levels of the warning chain, a primary objective of IOWave18 exercise is to enhance tsunami preparedness at community level. The purpose of exercise is to increase tsunami preparedness, evaluate response capabilities in each state and improve coordination throughout the region.<br />'' <br />''Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre (ITEWC), based out of the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad, is an autonomous institution under the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences.<br />''<br />''<br />