Indian Navy on Sunday commissioned Mormugao, a P15B stealth-guided missile destroyer in presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.


Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan, Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar, Goa Governor PS Sreedharan Pillai, Goa CM Pramod Sawant, and other dignitaries are also present in the ceremony.






Earlier, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh arrived in Mumbai for the commissioning ceremony of Mormugao, a P15B stealth-guided missile.








Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar on Sunday described the commissioning as yet another milestone in the history of indigenous warship building, particularly when the sister ship Visakhapatnam was inducted into the Indian Navy just over a year ago. 

 

Kumar said, "This achievement is indicative of the large strides we have taken in warship design and building capability over the last decade. The Navy has a tradition of naming ships after cities which creates an enduring umbilical link between the two."





The Navy is commissioning an indigenously built guided missile destroyer to augment maritime its capability amid China’s increasing presence in the Indian Ocean region.




Know All About P15 B Stealth-Guided Missile Destroyer




  • Mormugao P15B D67, named after the historic Goan port city Mormugao, undertook her first sea sortie on December 19 last year when Goa celebrated 60 years of liberation from Portuguese rule.


 



  • It is the second of the four ‘Visakhapatnam’ class destroyers, indigenously designed by the Indian Navy’s Warship Design Bureau and constructed by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd.


 



  • The warship is packed with a plethora of sophisticated sensors, modern radar, and weapons systems such as surface-to-surface missiles and surface-to-air missiles, according to the Indian Navy.  


 



  • The majestic ship measuring 163 metre in length and 17 metre in breadth with a displacement of 7,400 tonnes can be regarded as one of the most potent warships to have been constructed in India, it said.


 



  • The ship is equipped with four powerful gas turbines and is capable of achieving speeds in excess of 30 knots.


 



  • The Navy said the ship is equipped to fight under nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) warfare conditions and that it is fitted with a modern surveillance radar that provides target data to the gunnery weapon systems.


 



  • The ship’s anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities are provided by the indigenously developed rocket launchers, torpedo launchers and ASW helicopters.


 



  • The commissioning comes at a time when the Navy is aiming to become fully self-reliant by 2047 when the country celebrates 100 years of independence.


India has been focusing on bolstering its maritime capability with a focus on the Indian Ocean in the backdrop of concerns over China’s growing forays into the region, considered the backyard of the Indian Navy.


(With inputs from PTI)