INS Khanderi, India's 2nd Scorpene-class submarines inducted into Navy

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh commissioned India's second Scorpene-class submarine INS Khanderi into service in Mumbai on Saturday. The submarine possesses superior stealth and other major combat capabilities. The Defence Minister will also launch INS Nilgiri, the first ship of the P-17A frigates, along with an aircraft carrier drydock will be inaugurated on Saturday.

Vice Admiral G Ashok Kumar, the vice chief of the Navy had asserted that with the commissioning of 'Khanderi' and launch of 'Nilgiri', the combat potential of Indian Navy will "go up many folds". He had added that the aircraft carrier drydock, housed within the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai, is capable of docking India's largest ship INS Vikramaditya and has the ability to maintain ships for decades to come

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About INS Khanderi

INS Khanderi is the second Scorpene-class submarine that can attack with torpedoes as well as tube-launched anti-ship missiles whilst underwater or on surface, was launched at the Mazgaon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) in Mumbai in January 2017.

The first Scorpene-class submarine INS Kalvari was commissioned into the Navy by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December 2017. On the occasion, the Prime Minister had said Kalvari was an excellent example of 'Make in India' and will boost the Navy's might. The submarines, designed by the French naval defence and energy company, are being built by Mazagon Dock Ltd in Mumbai as part of Project-75 of the Indian Navy.

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Features of INS Khanderi

According to senior Navy officials, the cost of the Scorpene project now stands at around Rs 25,000 crore, while the cost of the seven frigates under P-17A is over Rs 48,000 crore. The state-of-the-art features of the Scorpene-class submarine include superior stealth and ability to launch a crippling attack on the enemy using the precision-guided weapon. The stealth features will give it an invulnerability, unmatched by many submarines. 

The submarine is designed to operate in all theatres, including the tropics. All means of communications are provided to ensure interoperability with other components of a naval task force. It can undertake multifarious missions typically undertaken by any modern submarine, that is anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, intelligence gathering, mine laying and area surveillance. The remaining four submarines in the Scorpene-class are -- 'Karanj', 'Vela', 'Vagir' and 'Vagsheer'.

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