INS Karanj | 11 Mar 2021

Why in News

Recently, Indian Navy’s third stealth Scorpene class (of Project-75) Submarine INS Karanj has been commissioned at the Naval Dockyard Mumbai.

Key Points

• About:
  
  • The previous INS Karanj (a Russian-origin submarine) was commissioned in 1969, at Riga in the erstwhile USSR. It had served the nation for 34 years up to 2003.
  • The new INS Karanj would form part of the Western Naval Command’s Submarine fleet.
  • The ship’s name, Karanj, is believed to be derived from the Karanja island (also known as Uran Island), a town in Raigad district, which lies in the south-east of Mumbai Harbour.
    
    • The Indian Navy has its base at Uran near Navi Mumbai.
• Project 75:
  
  • It is a programme by the Indian Navy that entails building six Scorpene Class attack submarines.
  • It is given support by the Department of Defence Production (Ministry of Defence) and Indian Navy throughout its various phases of construction.
  • The Mazagon Dock limited (MDL) is manufacturing six Scorpene submarines with technology assistance from Naval Group of France under a USD 3.75 bn deal signed in October 2005.
    
    • MDL aptly called “Ship Builder to the Nation”, is one of India’s leading Defence public sector undertaking shipyards under the Ministry of Defence.
• Other Submarines of the Ongoing Project-75:
  
  • Two submarines, Kalvari and Khanderi, have been commissioned into the Indian Navy.
  • The fourth Scorpene, Vela, has commenced its sea trials.
  • The fifth Scorpene ‘Vagir’ was launched in November 2020.
  • The sixth and last submarine, Vagsheer, is being readied for boot together.
• Scorpene Class Submarines:
  
  • The submarines in the Project-75 Scorpene Class are powered by diesel-electric propulsion systems.
  • Scorpene is one of the most sophisticated submarines, capable of undertaking multifarious missions including anti-surface ship warfare, anti-submarine warfare, intelligence gathering, mine laying, and area surveillance.
  • Scorpene is a conventional powered submarine (diesel-electric) weighing 1,500 tonnes and can go up to depths of 300m.
  • The Scorpene class is the Navy’s first modern conventional submarine series in almost two decades since INS Sindhushastra, procured from Russia in July 2000.
  • The Navy is looking to install Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) modules on all the Scorpene submarines to enhance endurance.

Way Forward

• With the launch of Karanj, India further cements its position as a Submarine Building Nation and MDL has more than lived up to its reputation as Warship and Submarine Builders to the Nation. This is totally in sync with the current impetus of the Government towards Make in India and Atmanirbhar Bharat.

Source: PIB