The Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral RK Dhowan, PVSM, AVSM, YSM, ADC commissioned INS Sumitra (fourth indigenous Naval Offshore Patrol Vessel), designed and built by Goa Shipyard Limited, into the Indian Navy at an impressive ceremony at Chennai. Vice Admiral Satish Soni, Flag Officer Commanding-in Chief Eastern Naval Command, Vice Admiral AV Subhedar, Controller Warship Production and Acquisition (CWP&A), IHQ MoD(N), Rear Admiral Shekhar Mittal (Retd), Chairman and Managing Director, Goa Shipyard Ltd (GSL) and various other dignitaries were present during the commissioning ceremony.
INS Sumitra will have a major role to play in patrolling India’s eastern seaboard and will be an important component under the NOIC (Tamil Nadu & Puducherry) and the Eastern Naval Command, which has the responsibility of countering the maritime challenges in the Bay of Bengal and the waters of the adjoining Eastern Indian Ocean Region. Complimenting the efforts of our naval ship designers and defence sector shipyards, the Admiral stated that over the years we have progressively designed and constructed 120 warships and submarines of various categories in difference shipyards, where 41 ships and submarines are currently under construction and over the decades, we have transformed from a “Buyer’s Navy” to a “Builders Navy”, he stated.
The Indian Coast Guard Ship ‘Abhiraj, the fourth in the series of 20 Fast Patrol Vessels (FPVs), designed and built by Cochin Shipyard Limited, was commissioned on 02 September 2014 at Tuticorin by Vice Adm SPS Cheema Flag Officer Commanding-in Chief, Southern Naval Command in the presence of Inspector General SP Sharma Commander Coast Guard Region (East) and other senior dignitaries of the Central and State govt.
