PM Modi commissions homegrown INS Kalvari
The INS Kalvari, the first of the six indigenously built scorpene- class submarines, which will be built by 2020 with the help of France, was commissioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai on Thursday. The submarine was built by the Mazgaon Dock Shipbuilders Limited ( MDL). The Prime Minister described INS Kalvari as a prime example of ‘ Make in India.’ However, he refrained from making any political comment in his address at the function, which was under the scanner of the Election Commission.
Mr Modi also said that the road to development in the 21st century goes through the Indian Ocean, which is why the Indian Ocean has a special place in the policies of the Government. He added that the government’s policies and the bravery of the armed forces have ensured that the use of terrorism as a proxy war in Jammu and Kashmir has not been successful.
The commissioning of INS Kalvari has reaffirmed the giant strides taken by the MDL in the ongoing ‘ Make In India’ programme, which is being actively implemented by the Department of Defence Production ( MoD). The MDL is constructing six Scorpene class submarines with techcnology transfer from M/ s Naval Group ( formerly known as DCNS) of France.
Commodore Rakesh Anand, chairman and managing director of MDL said, “The induction of INS Kalvari into the Indian Navy would be a game changer in underwater warfare due to its superiority in all operational aspects. The aspect pertaining to completion of all weapon firings prior to the commissioning of the submarine, was indeed an unique achievement.”
The Scorpene submarine can undertake multifarious types of missions, including anti- surface warfare, anti- submarine warfare, intelligence gathering, mine laying and area surveillance among others.