The Hindu : National : A tale of two sail ships in Kochi

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Apr 27, 2005

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National

A tale of two sail ships in Kochi

John L. Paul

Of India's INS Tarangini and Indonesia's KRI Dewaruci

KOCHI: Not all navies have sail-training ships like India's INS Tarangini and Indonesia's KRI Dewaruci. While Tarangini, usually anchored off Kochi, set sail from here a few days ago to participate in the tall-ship race at Ireland, Dewaruci, on its way to the race, called at the port city on Monday. Tarangini will return after a six-month tour of Europe, while the Indonesian vessel will return home after nine months.

The Indian band played Saare jahaan se acha... as Tarangini, the first sailing ship of the Indian Navy to circumnavigate the world over a year ago, set off on the European odyssey. Personnel on the ship's deck and those at the South Jetty in the Naval Base here waved to one another as Tarangini set sail, wishing `bon voyage' to seafarers who embarked on Lokayan '05. Family members were in tears: they will not see the men for another six months. The men, alert and smart in their whites, maintained their composure and briskly walked into the waiting vessel. While the theme of the 2003-2004 world tour was `Building Bridges of Friendship', the Europe tour is aimed at `Strengthening Bridges of Friendship'. In 2003, Tarangini was declared the overall champion in the young-sailing division. On their part, the Indonesian ship's band played, among others, the popular Hindi film tune Kuch kuch hota hai... here. For six months, the people of Kochi will miss INS Tarangini, the milky-white vessel.

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