Mumbai: In a much-needed boost to the naval prowess of India, the third of the Scorpene-class submarine, Karanj, was launched from the Mazagon Dock on Wednesday.
The vessel will undergo two years of rigorous sea trials before it is inducted into the Indian Navy. While the submarine’s superior stealth capability and state-of-the-art acoustic features will add to India’s conventional fleet, it still leaves many questions about her critical weaponry unanswered.
Despite the Prime Minister’s Officer rapping the Ministry of Defence over the inordinate delays in the ambitious Project 75, it is likely that the delivery of remaining three Scorpene-class submarines might be delayed. Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba was silent on questions about the timeline of the remaining vessels. “The learnings from the process are with us. I think the rest of the three boats will be delivered on time,” he told reporters in Mumbai.
Senior sources in the Navy, though, told News 18 that delays have impacted the timely delivery of the remaining three boats.
"There have been delays earlier. MPM items from Europe were delayed as they couldn't conform to commercial standards of Indian requirement. It took us a while to put all requirements together. On the remaining three boats, there have been certain delays which have impacted. We are still trying to expedite that. By the end of 2020, these three boats should be delivered. For that to happen, all the material has to be provided to us by the middle of this year. Our collaborators have promised us that. The timely delivery of the three boats will depend on this," Commodore Rakesh Anand, Chairperson and Managing Director of Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL), told News18.
Under Project 75, which has been delayed by at least eight years, six Scorpene-class submarines were to be manufactured in India by Mazagon Dock Limited, in collaboration with the French company Naval Group (formerly DCNS).
While INS Kalvari was commissioned in the Indian Navy by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 14, 2017, Khanderi and Karanj have been launched in the last one year.
Three more boats – Vela, Valgir and Vagsheer – are under construction. They are expected to be completed by the end of 2020.
However, ambiguity over the critical Black Shark torpedoes continues to haunt the Indian Navy. Despite postponing the induction of INS Kalvari for a brief period due to the lack of availability of the torpedoes, the submarine had to be fitted with another set of torpedoes.
“What MDL has done right now is fantastic. They have taken another set of torpedoes, modified them and have fitted them in INS Kalvari,” a senior official of the Indian Navy told News18.
When asked about the Black Shark torpedoes, he said, “As you know, the manufacturer has been blacklisted. We cannot buy anything from a blacklisted manufacturer.”
KARANJ, A MILESTONE
Karanj is a milestone in indigenous defence manufacturing. “This is the first time that the third submarine of a series has been manufactured indigenously. MDL has crossed a milestone by doing this," the company’s CMD, Commodore Rakesh Anand, told News18.
He further added, “Karanj has impressive stealth features and one of the lowest noise signatures. The enemy won’t be able to detect it. It is a huge force multiplier and is miles ahead of submarines that our neighbours have. Our enemies’ entire resources would get divided in hunting our submarine. On the other hand, thanks to her strong sonar capability, she will be able to detect the enemy much faster. Karanj is equipped with state-of-the-art torpedoes and surface-to-surface cruise missile launch capability. The enemy won't come to know from where the missile was launched.”
Answering questions on the Scorpene data leak, Commodore Anand said that the leak had not affected the entire project by even a bit.
Alain Gullou, Senior Executive Vice President of Naval group, said it was a proud moment for them as well. Answering questions on delay in Project 75, he said, “When you are managing such a project, there are always challenges. There are techniques and technology to be acquired – a lot of training and experience, loads of work to do. Today, we are confident we will stick to schedule. There will be no delays.”
During his address, Admiral Sunil Lanba said that the launch of Karanj marked a significant departure from the manning and training philosophy that was adopted for the first two submarines and added that from the third submarine onwards, the Navy would be fully self-reliant in training and certification processes.
“The state-of-the-art technology utilised for construction of the Scorpene-class submarines has ensured superior stealth features such as advanced acoustic silencing techniques, low radiated noise levels, hydro-dynamically optimized shape and the ability to launch a crippling attack on the enemy using precision-guided weapons. The attack can be launched with both torpedoes and tube launched anti-ship missiles, whilst underwater or on surface. The stealth of this potent platform is enhanced by the special attention given to various signatures,” he said.
Admiral Lanba further added that the stealth features give the submarine a kind-of invulnerability, unmatched by most others.
“Scorpene submarines can undertake multifarious types of missions i.e. anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, intelligence gathering, mine laying, area surveillance etc. The submarine is designed to operate in all theatres, with means that provide to ensure interoperability with other components of a Naval Task Force. It is a potent platform, marking a generational shift in submarine operations,” he said.
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