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Fast-attack craft joins naval fleet

Special Correspondent

INS Bangaram topatrol the Lakshadweep islands and Kerala coast

IN RAPT ATTENTION: Vice-Admiral S.C.S. Bangara inspecting a parade at the commissioning of the fast-attacking craft INS Bangaram at the Naval Base in Kochi on Friday.

KOCHI: INS Bangaram, a fast-attack craft meant to patrol the Lakshadweep islands and the Kerala coast, was inducted into naval service on Friday.

Vice-Admiral SCS Bangara, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Southern Naval Command, commissioned the ship at a ceremony attended by senior Navy officials this morning.

The ship is named after the Bangaram island in Lakshadweep and will be based in Kochi under the naval officer in-charge of Kerala and Lakshadweep, Commodore M.S. Pavithran.

The 46-metre, 320-ton ship is capable of sailing at a speed of more than 20 nautical miles an hour. The fastness of this sophisticated warship is useful for an extensive surveillance of the large group of islands in Lakshadweep, Naval officials said. It is capable of sailing over 2,000 nautical miles without replenishment.

INS Bangaram is the first of the indigenously designed and built fast-attack craft. Built at the Garden Reach Shipyard, Kolkata, the ship is almost entirely Indian in design, construction and weapons package. It is fitted with state-of-the-art communication and navigational equipment.

The ship's weaponry includes the close-range anti-aircraft gun, CRN 91, which has a range of about 5 km and capability to fire 500 rounds a minute. Vice-Admiral Bangara, speaking after commissioning the ship, said that INS Bangaram was an added impetus to the Navy's objective of indigenous warship production. He noted that the security environment of the Indian Ocean region continues to remain uncertain and unpredictable.

Low intensity maritime threats and maritime terrorism continue to remain a matter of concern in the neighbourhood, he said. "With increasing investment and infrastructure development along the coast of Kerala, it is important that we gear ourselves to protect our vital coastal installations and strategically important island territories," he said. Rear Admiral Rajendra Singh, Chief of Staff, Southern Naval Command; Rear Admiral V.S. Chaudhari, Flag Officer, sea training; and, Commodore N.K. Mishra, Principal Director, Ship Production, attended the ceremony.

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