Nearly 10 months after >INS Sindhurakshak sank in the Mumbai harbour in an accident which killed 18 sailors, the submarine has finally been retrieved from the waters. It will soon be anchored at the Naval Dockyard in South Mumbai.
The Navy said that an inquiry will be conducted to determine if the submarine is sea-worthy or whether it should be decommissioned. However, sources claim that the possibility of Sindhurakshak being reused is remote.
“The fire on the submarine was caused by missiles and torpedos. This would have damaged the hull of the submarine and therefore the possibility of it being decommissioned seems to be imminent,” said a senior naval officer on condition of anonymity.
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The Indian arm of the U.S.-based firm, Resolve Marine had got the contract for the Rs. 240 crore salvage operations in January.
“Once the salvers make the submarine “fit to float” , it will be handed over to us,” a senior naval official said.
He said that the submarine will be subjected to two set of tests — one to ascertain the cause of the accident and the other to decide the scope of the work needed to make it seaworthy.
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“An interim report has been submitted by the Board of Inquiry detailing six probable causes of the accident. A second probe will be conducted to ascertain the exact cause of the mishap,” the source said.
The Naval dockyard will also conduct a probe to decide if the submarine is seaworthy after refits are undertaken or whether it should be decommissioned.
The completion of the salvage operation comes close on the heels of the newly appointed Defence minister Mr. Arun Jaitley paying his first visit to the Western Naval Command.