Navy to get first indigenous anti-submarine warship tomorrow

Kolkata: Ready to protect the waters, India's first indigenously-built anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kamorta will be handed over to the Indian Navy here tomorrow, defence officials said.

The super-sophisticated front line warship will be formally handed over by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd (GRSE) chairman and managing director Rear Admiral (Retd) A K Verma to the Navy at a ceremony in GRSE's Fitting Out Jetty, defence PRO T K Singha said.

INS Kamorta, first in its class of four ASW corvettes being built by GRSE under Project-28 for the Navy, is the first warship ever built in the country with almost 90 per cent of indigenous content.

It is also the first warship manufactured in India with indigenously developed special grade high-tensile steel produced by state-owned Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL).

Armed with stealth features, it is the first warship equipped with the new trainable chaff launcher - Kavach.

The hull of the ship encompassed the bulk of sensors and weapon systems that were also indigenously manufactured by various Indian Industries.

The foldable hangar door fitted for the first time with a rail-less helicopter traversing system is also a noteworthy first on any Indian naval ship, and would give helicopter operations from the corvette deck a significant edge over existing platforms of other warships.

The ASW corvette brought to fruition a significant project in India's pursuit for self-reliance in indigenous warship building, bringing closer home Indian Navy's quest to be a

'Builder's Navy' as well as a true 'Blue-water Navy' with ships and submarines designed and built within the country.