Navy to induct first Scorpene-class submarine on Thursday

Mumbai, Dec 13 : The first of the indigenous Scorpene-class submarines, INS Kalvari, will be commissioned in the Indian Navy on Thursday in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other dignitaries, Navy officials said on Wednesday.

Commissioning of this submarine -- named after the first Foxtort-class submarine, INS Kalvari inducted into the Navy on December 8, 1967 -- comes days after the Navy observed the golden jubilee of its submarine wing.

The Scorpenes are being built by the Mazagaon Dockyard Limited here under Project 75 with transfer of technology from a foreign collaborator -- DCNS of France.

The state-of-the-art features of the Scorpenes include superior stealth and ability to launch crippling attacks on the enemy with precision-guided weapons.

The attacks can be carried out with torpedoes both while submerged or on the surface -- in all war theatres, including the tropics, giving it the invulnerability unmatched by many other submarines.

The second Scorpene submarine, INS Khanderi, is presently undergoing trials and is likely to be soon inducted into the Navy.