Submarine mishaps: Navy had raised alarm with PMO, Defence Ministry

[favabeans]

Submarine mishaps: Navy had raised alarm with PMO, Defence Ministry | The Indian Express

Submarine mishaps: Navy had raised alarm with PMO, Defence Ministry

Amid questions over functioning of Navy in the backdrop of mishaps, it has come to light that the maritime force had been alerting the government since 2008 about the falling strength of its submarine fleet and pressing the need for bolstering its capabilities.

The Navy had been writing to the Prime Minister’s Office and the Defence Ministry, highlighting that delay in the Scorpene submarine project and finalisation of the project for next line of submarines would result in dwindling of its capabilities, sources said on Friday.

The Navy has been telling the government that the dwindling fleet of underwater vessels will weaken its capability to keep an eye on the vast Indian Ocean Region and also weaken the ability to fend off submarine attacks, they said.

Till 2013, India had a fleet of 15 submarines including 10 Russian Kilo Class vessels, four German HDW vessels and one leased nuclear submarine INS Chakra.

But after the INS Sindhurakshak mishap in August 2013, the strength of the fleet has gone down and the Defence Ministry gave its approval for upgrading four Kilo Class and two HDW submarines for maintaining its capabilities.

The Defence Ministry has held several discussions with it on the submarine fleet expansion plan and agreed to change a Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) decision in 1999 by approving the construction of two submarines in foreign countries under the Project-75 India.

Under the project, six such vessels are to be built, they said.

The Defence Ministry is also preparing a note for the Cabinet Committee on Security to hasten the approval for Project-75 India.

The Navy has also suffered because of accidents including the sinking of INS Sindhurakshak in which 18 personnel died after the explosion apparently in its torpedo section.

As per the Submarine fleet expansion plan, the Navy is looking to acquire 24 new vessels by the year 2030.


to help us personalise your reading experience.

 

[kurup]

Major mishap averted as INS Sindhuratna wasn’t fully loaded

The 94 crew members onboard INS Sindhuratna could have met with a similar fate as that of Russian Kilo-class submarine, INS Sindhurakshak, had the former been fully loaded with armamen— missiles and torpedoes, said theIndian Navy. Sources said that in both cases, the prima facie cause was sparks in the battery compartment that led to the mishaps.
“If INS Sindhuratna had been fully loaded, it could have worsened the situation killing all 94 onboard. The navy has averted a major disaster,” said a source.

TOI has learnt that the batteries on INS Sindhuratna were old and had not been replaced. “The batteries were not changed during its refit (maintenance) that was done in December 2013. The submarine is a diesel-electric vessel, which runs on battery power provided by 240 lead acid batteries weighing about 800 kg each. These batteries tend to release flammable hydrogen gas, especially when they are being charged, and submarines have safety systems to address emergencies arising out of this. Old batteries are even worse,” the source said.

Work has already started to clear the battery compartment located on the lower part of the submarine. “It will take at least 15-20 days to clear the compartment before replacement batteries are fitted,” the source added. The submarine was at sea off the Mumbai coast for routine training and workup (inspection). In the early hours of Feb 26, a fire broke in the battery compartment and spread to the sailors’ room on the third compartment. In the process of controlling the blaze, seven crew members inhaled smoke and felt uneasy. Sea King helicopter with a medical team was rushed and the seven crew members were transferred to naval hospital Asvini.

Naval ships were dispatched, which had towed the submarine to Naval Dockyard on February 27 morning.

“The submarine was towed to the dock after the two officers-Lieutenant Commander Kapish Muwal (28) and Lieutenant Manoranjan Kumar (27)-shut off the main circuit, which helped in averting a major disaster at sea,” said the Navy.

Meanwhile, the seven injured crew members, including an officer, were shifted from the ICU and kept in the normal ward at the naval hospital, Asvini, after their condition improved.

Major mishap averted as INS Sindhuratna wasn’t fully loaded | idrw.org