In a major relief to the Indian Navy, its Kilo class submarine INS Sindhughosh that ran aground and got stuck while returning to the naval dockyard in Mumbai was salvaged and refloated on Saturday.
It was also learnt that neither the boat nor its crew had reported any damage or loss.
The Mail Today was the first to report the incident on Saturday. In a marked change from its earlier stance, the Navy too admitted that the incident had indeed taken place but claimed the boat did not run aground.
The Indian Navy’s Kilo class submarine INS Sindhughosh, which ran aground and got stuck while returning to the naval dockyard in Mumbai, has been salvaged and refloated
However, it was reliably learnt that elaborate efforts were made to refloat the submarine.
This attempt was done with the help of tugboats during the rise in tide.
“In Mumbai, there is a serious problem of siltation which effectively reduces the depth of waters. This boat had to enter at a certain time, keeping the tide in mind, but got a little late in entering, which is why it had to face a bit of problem. It remained grounded for a very short while and we have managed to recover it without any trouble,” said a source.
There were apprehensions if the incident had damaged the ship’s hull and sonar system since both the parts were exposed to the ground.
It was learnt that no decision had been taken on whether the boat would be dry-docked for an examination.
It was also not immediately clear if the navy was going to launch a Board of Inquiry (BoI) into the incident.
The Indian Navy’s conventional underwater capability, demonstrated by its German and Russian diesel-electric submarine fleet, is on the decline with number of submarines dwindling.
Sources indicated that at present the ‘campaign season’ is underway, in which a submarine exercises its manoeuvre, fire power and goes to sea for a complete work-up.
“We hope that there is no impact on INS Sindhughosh from this incident,” said a source.
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Navy salvages submarine stuck off Mumbai coast