Indian Navy To Induct INS Kalvari Only When Operational Ready

Indian defense ministry has plans to commission vessels hereafter, including first Scorpene-class submarine INS Kalvari into service provided only when it is ready for operational deployment.

However, the ministry is seeking to change the old practice of inducting incomplete warships, India Today reported.

This is a major change in thinking of the government as earlier the shipyards would hand over warships to the Navy and then would continue trials on the systems on board and the vessels would be made fighting fit long after their official induction.

"The defense ministry is of the view that the vessels should be commissioned in service only if they are ready for deployment in operations moments after they are commissioned into the service," Navy officials said.

"That is why, we have asked the original equipment manufacturer Mazagon Dockyards Limited and the French DCNS to complete all trials, including sensors and weapon fitment, before it is handed over to the Navy for operations," they said.

The issue of changing the warship commissioning was first felt when Prime Minister Modi commissioned the indigenous warship INS Kolkata in MDL in 2014.

While inducting the vessel, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said induction of Kolkata would deter the enemies of the nation but it was soon pointed out that the INS Kolkata was not really complete.

Several major weapon systems and sensors were missing and were either being developed or yet to be procured including the Barak-8 air defence missiles and towed array sonars which could provide it with the capability to detect enemy submarines in waters.

Here after the manufacturer should complete each and every work related to the submarine and hand over a fully complete vessel to the force," said the navy officials.