India’s Nuclear Capable 'Arihant' Submarine Back In Water After 10-months

India’s first ballistic missile submarine INS Arihant is back in the water after 10 months of being out of service due to the damage caused by a ‘human error’.

A highly placed source told Sputnik that the 6000-ton nuclear-powered submarine has been repaired and made available to the Indian Navy as the damage was not substantial, contrary to initial fears.

According to a report by The Hindu, Arihant’s propulsion compartment was damaged after water rushed in as a hatch on the rear side was left open by mistake while it was at Vishakhapatnam harbor in late 2016. Since the accident, the submarine, built under the Advanced Technology Vessel project (ATV), has been undergoing repairs and clean up since a year.

The Arihant issue rose soon after INS Chakra, the Nerpa class nuclear submarine leased from Russia, was also undergoing repairs after suffering damage to its sonar domes while entering the Visakhapatnam harbour in early October. 

India’s first ballistic missile submarine is the result of a $2.9 billion submarine technology program. Construction on Arihant began in 2009, and the ship was commissioned into the Indian Navy seven years later in October 2016.