India's first nuclear powered submarine, INS Chakra, will be commissioned by Defence Minister A.K. Antony here on Wednesday. With this milestone of the Navy, India will join the elite league of nuclear submarine owning countries, the others being the U.S., Russia, the U.K., France and China. INS Chakra is the new name for the Russian-built Nerpa, which has been brought here on a 10-year lease for giving a boost to India's underwater warfare capability at an estimated cost of $920 million. India last had a Russian-built Chakra submarine with nuclear capability in 1988. It was brought to Visakhapatnam for imparting training to Indian naval personnel. Visakhapatnam is the headquarters of Indian Navy's submarine arm.
