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News of Jan
3, 2007
Indian Navy to Commission New Warship
Bangalore, Jan 3
INS Shardul, the newest Indian Navy warship equipped with latest
electronic warfare systems, will be commissioned into service
Thursday at the Karwar naval base in coastal Karnataka by Defence
Minister A.K. Antony.
The auxiliary warship, built by Garden Reach Ship builders and
Engineers Ltd, Kolkata, is capable of carrying 11 armored tanks, 10
army vehicles and about 500 troop, helicopters, two rocket
launchers, two anti-aircraft guns and shoulder launcher
surface-to-air missiles (SAMs), besides the crew.
According to naval sources, Shardul, named after an amphibious
animal, stands for the Royal Bengal Tiger, symbolizing agility,
strength and valor, the characteristic features of an amphibious
operation. It will be based at Karwar, about 500km from here.
"The warship is equipped with the latest advanced electronic warfare
systems and automatic power management system. As the third landing
ship tank of the Navy, Shardul is the first of a new class, capable
of transporting various kinds of combat equipment," a naval
spokesman told IANS here.
The ship is also capable of operating Seaking 42C and Dhruv advanced
light helicopter (ALH), besides launching /recovery of marine
commandos through sea and by copters for vertical envelopment.
"The ship is designed to support build up of men and material after
the main landing. As a hospital ship with facilities in
containerized form and as a fleet tanker for limited exercise," the
spokesman said.
The modern version of Shardul replaced the earlier ship that was
commissioned way back in 1975 at Gdynia (Poland) by then Indian
ambassador in Poland D S Kametkar. In 1993, its base port was
shifted to Visakhapatnam from Port Blair and joined the fourth
landing squadron under the eastern fleet. It was decommissioned in
June 1997.
"Amphibious operations are by far the most complex of all military
operations in view of the dexterous planning involved and the
requirement of coordination between the diverse units -- sea, land
and air," the official pointed out.
As an amphibious vessel, Shardul can be configured and deployed to
operate at various levels of conflict and in multiple theatres on
account of its large accommodation and storage space. With a lift
capability of 750 tonnes, it can operate even in shallow waters and
is capable of beaching.
"The ship is capable of performing a wide range of missions from
providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to
peace-keeping operations and major combat operations," the official
added.
IANS
News of Jan
3, 2007
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