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Navy commissions two missile warships

The fighting capabilities of the Indian Navy on Monday got a major boost when Maharashtra Governor Dr P C Alexander commissioned two warships, one a destroyer INS Delhi and another a corvette INS Kirch, on the same day.

The event was a landmark in the history of the Mazagaon Docks Limited, which designed and built both ships, as it was the first time in its 227-year existence and 40 years after it became a defence shipyard that two front-line warships were being commissioned concurrently.

In another first for the Indian warship building industry, two Indian shipyards collaborated in the construction of the INS Kirch.

At the ceremony in the Naval Dockyard, Bombay, both Alexander and Commodore (retd) H S Kang Chairman and Managing Director, MDL, stressed that the ships were a major achievement for MDL.

While they have been completely designed and built by MDL, 30% of their components, mostly the arsenal, were imported, mainly from Russia and Ukraine.

INS Mumbai is a Delhi-Class guided missile destroyer and INS Kirch, a Kora-Class guided missile corvette. While INS Mumbai will join the Western Naval Command, INS Kirch will be part of the Eastern Naval Command.

According to Commodore Kang, INS Mumbai is the third of the Delhi-Class destroyers built by MDL and represents the cutting edge of combat technology in India. It is one of the largest warships built in this part of the globe, he said.

Commodore Kang said that the predecessors of the INS Mumbai, INS Delhi and Mysore, which were commissioned on November 15, 1997 and June 2, 1999, respectively, have already sailed all the major oceans of the world and, in the process, have proved the integrity and excellence of design and quality of construction.

Capable of hitting a top speed of 32 knots, it is 164 metres long with a displacement of 6,500 tonnes, the INS Mumbai is quipped to carry two large helicopters, Sea Kings or the indigenous Advanced Light Helicopters, in her twin hangars providing the much-needed 'extended reach'.

Armed with missiles and torpedoes as well as sensitive sensor suites, these are formidable force multipliers.

It is armed with surface-to-surface missiles, surface-to-air missiles, radar-controlled guns, torpedoes, anti-submarine rockets and chaff decoys. Commissioning Commanding Officer Captain Sanjeev Bhasin said that the destroyer is fitted with state-of-the-art Advanced Code Ray Sensors to detect submarines.

Post-commissioning, the INS Mumbai will be affiliated with the Maratha Light Infantry. It will be manned by a 350-member crew, including 35 officers.

Coincidently, Captain Bhasin was also the first commander of the indigenous missile corvette INS Khukri.

INS Kirch, though smaller in size with a displacement of 1,500 tonnes, is fitted with a formidable offensive arsenal of surface-to-surface missiles and guns besides anti-air shoulder launched missiles, chaff launchers for decoy and close in weapon systems with tremendous power.

It is equipped with state-of-the-art sensors and an electronic warfare suite and can operate the force multiplier ALH and Chetak helicopters.

Designed with a low radar cross section area, INS Kirch is capable of penetrating deep into enemy lines.

Production of the INS Kirch commenced at the Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Limited at Calcutta and was thereafter transferred to MDL for completion of the outfit work.

The INS Kirch will be manned by a 150-member crew, including 10 officers.

Its commissioning CO will be Commander Amar Kumar Mahadevan who has specialised in navigation and aircraft direction and is a graduate of Defence Services Staff College, Wellington. His previous sea appointments include command of the INS Allepey.

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