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Construction of the first, second and third submarine commenced in December 2006, December 2007 and August 2008 respectively. As per the contract signed with Mazagaon Docks Limited (MDL), first submarine is scheduled to be delivered in December 2012 and thereafter, one each every year till December 2017. On account of some teething problems, absorption of technology and delays in augmentation of industrial infrastructure and procurement of MDL purchased materials (MPM), slippage in the delivery schedule is expected. Delay in scheduled delivery of submarines is likely to have an impact on the envisaged submarine force levels.

This information was given by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in a written reply to Shri Kishnbhai V Patel in Lok Sabha today.
 

Mon, Jul 20 05:42 PM

New Delhi, July 20 (IANS) The delay in the delivery of French Scorpene submarines would adversely impact the underwater capability of the Indian Navy, Defence Minister A.K. Antony said Monday.

He told parliament that slippage in the delivery schedule is expected on account of some teething problems, absorption of technology and delays in augmentation of industrial infrastructure and procurement of MDL (Mazgaon Docks Limited) purchased materials (MPM).

Delay in scheduled delivery of submarines is likely to have an impact on the envisaged submarine force levels, he said.

Construction of the first, second and third submarine commenced in December 2006, December 2007 and August 2008, respectively.

India inked a $3.5 billion deal with France in 2006 for six Scorpene submarines. The first of these submarines is to be delivered by 2011 while the remaining five will be built at the state-owned Mazgaon Docks Limited in Mumbai.

Under a 20-year submarine perspective plan, Indian Navy intends to acquire 24 submarines by the year 2020.
 
Navy to be responsible for overall maritime security: Govt

The Indian Navy will solely be responsible for overall security of the coastal zones, the government said today.

Minister of State for Home Affairs M Ramachandran said the Director General of Coast Guard will also assume the role of Commander Coastal Command.

"The government of India has designated Indian Navy as the authority responsible for overall maritime security which includes coastal security and offshore security," the Minister said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

"The Director General Coast Guard has been designated as Commander Coastal Command responsible for overall coordination between Central and state agencies in all matters relating to coastal security. These decisions are being implemented by the Ministry of Defence," he said.

While replying to a question on instances of infiltration through the coastal areas, Ramachandran said, "As per the information available, there has been no case reported or encountered during the last three years, except a case regarding infiltration by sea route on November 26 last year leading to Mumbai attacks. The matter is under investigation and sub-judice."

Joint coastal patrolling is also being carried out along the coasts of Gujarat and Maharashtra under operation SWAN by Coast Guard, Navy and other agencies, the Minister said.

India had previously used a leased Russian-built nuclear submarine INS Chakra from January 1988 to January 1991.

With the launch of the indigenously-built nuclear-powered submarine, India will join the exclusive club of US, Russia, China, France and the UK with similar capabilities.

The ATV, developed jointly by the Navy and the DRDO, will give India the additional power of a nuclear weapon strike from the sea, apart from surface and air which it currently possesses.

According to sources, the nuclear reactor of the submarine has been developed at the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam.
 
India's Scorpene Subs Delayed
By vivek raghuvanshi, NEW DELHI
Published: 21 Jul 2009 17:50

Technical problems are delaying India's Scorpene submarine program, Defence Minister A. K Antony told Parliament July 20.

"On account of some teething problems, absorption of technology and delays in augmentation of industrial infrastructure and procurement of Mazagon Docks Limited (MDL) purchased materials (MPM), slippage in the delivery schedule is expected. Delay in scheduled delivery of submarines is likely to have an impact on the envisaged submarine force levels," Antony said.

The program got underway in 2005, when India licensed the right to build six Scorpenes for $3.9 billion from France. Construction of the first, second and third submarine began in December 2006, December 2007 and August 2008 respectively. The first sub was to have been delivered in December 2012, with one more each year through 2017, said Antony.

The Navy currently operates 16 submarines, including two Foxtrots due to retire. By 2012, there will be only nine submarines left, said a senior Indian Navy official.

The official noted that China is building several nuclear submarines to add to its sub fleet of roughly 30 modern boats and a few dozen older ones.

India's Scorpene Subs Delayed - Defense News
 
Sea trials of Russia's Nerpa submarine on schedule - official | Top Russian news and analysis online | 'RIA Novosti' newswire

KHABAROVSK, July 24 (RIA Novosti) - Final sea trials of Russia's Nerpa nuclear-powered submarine, which was damaged in a fatal accident during previous tests, are continuing on schedule, a shipyard official said on Friday.

The vessel resumed sea trials on July 10 in the Sea of Japan following extensive repairs.

"The resumed sea trials are going according to schedule," the official at the Amur shipyard said, without specifying when the tests would be completed.

A high-ranking defense official said on July 10 the trials would last for about two weeks.

On November 8, 2008, while the Nerpa was undergoing sea trials in the Sea of Japan, its on-board fire suppression system went off, releasing a deadly gas into the sleeping quarters. Three crewmembers and 17 shipyard workers were killed. There were 208 people, 81 of them submariners, on board the vessel at the time.

Following the repairs, which cost an estimated 1.9 billion rubles ($60 million), the submarine was cleared for final sea trials before being commissioned with the Russian Navy and leased to the Indian Navy by the end of 2009.

India reportedly paid $650 million for a 10-year lease of the 12,000-ton K-152 Nerpa, an Akula II class nuclear-powered attack submarine.

Akula II class vessels are considered the quietest and deadliest of all Russian nuclear-powered attack submarines.
 
Will IN conduct its own sea trials after leasing or will the Nerpa be operational soon after its commissioning in the Russian Navy? Can someone clarify.

Going by the delays in Gorshkov, it makes us skeptical about the delivery of the N-sub per schedule.
 
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any update on the india-made AC?can someone start a thread about that?we would love to get more information
 

India’s largest warship builders — Mazagon Dock Ltd (MDL), Mumbai; and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata — have prevailed over the Indian Navy’s objections. Business Standard has learned that MDL and GRSE will divide between them the entire order for seven improved stealth frigates, code-named Project 17A.

The navy was insisting that the first two frigates of Project 17A be built abroad, so that MDL and GRSE could learn how to build ships using new modular methods that are preferred by European shipyards. This would have raised the price of Project 17A by more than Rs 5,000 crore.

MDL and GRSE countered that they possessed the technology and the experience for building cutting-edge warships entirely in India.

Each Shivalik class frigate of Project 17 was priced at Rs 2,600 crore, and the navy plans to insist on the same price for Project 17A. Building abroad would cost at least twice as much as building at MDL and GRSE.

But the navy was focusing on early delivery, rather than cost. Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Sureesh Mehta, insisted on presenting before the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), the highest decision-making body in the Ministry of Defence (MoD), the advantages of kicking off Project 17A in a foreign shipyard. But Defence Minister AK Antony stepped in to order entirely indigenous production.

At GRSE, a modernisation programme is underway to create the facilities needed for building Project 17A. The Chairman and Managing Director (CMD), Rear Admiral KC Sekhar, said a fully equipped modular yard with a 250-ton Goliath crane will be ready in mid-2011. By then, MoD sanctions will be in place and the navy would have completed the design of Project 17B.

Explaining the time-line, Admiral Sekhar said, “The MoD has informally told us that MDL and GRSE will build Project 17A; we are awaiting [formal sanction]. Once the navy finalises the size and design of the new frigate, we will decide our build strategy and costing. Then, hopefully, by the end of 2009, the MoD will issue a Request for Proposals (RfP); GRSE and MDL will submit separate quotes; and then the MoD will place a formal order on the shipyards. Construction should start by end-2011.”

This is the first time that India’s two major defence shipyards are sharing one project between them. And while MDL and GRSE are bidding separately, they are working in close consultation.

Admiral Sekhar points out that both shipyards have a common aim: to construct this largest-ever order of seven frigates without any delays. He explains, “We will have a common design for all seven ships of Project 17A. MDL can be the lead shipyard, since they have more experience in building bigger ships. They can start work on the first frigate; after six months, we will start work on the second one.”

While MDL takes the lead in construction, GRSE will lead the design effort. A month ago, three companies — GRSE; French shipbuilder, DCNS; and Kolkata-based IT engineering company, Vision Comptech — formed a joint venture (JV) to design marine products, including warships, for customers globally. This JV is expected to work with the navy’s Directorate General of Naval Design (DGND) on the design for Project 17A.

If all goes well, say the shipyards, the first Project 17A frigates should be delivered to the Indian Navy by 2016-17.

Old Thread--
http://www.defence.pk/forums/india-defence/28525-navy-seals-45-000-cr-deal-seven-frigate.html
 
Does anyone has any information in regards to the DSRV in Indian navy , whether they have it or not or is there any future planning.
 
Shortage of warships in Indian Navy.


RECENT reports indicate that the government has approved the acquisition of six new frigates for the Navy, all to be built locally, three at the Mazagon Docks (MDL) at Mumbai and the remaining three at Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) at Kolkata. The decision to acquire these ships, when the force levels are dwindling, is something to feel satisfied about; what is not so reassuring is the manner in which this decision is sought to be executed.Look at the record of MDL. Its first frigate came out in 1972, the twelfth, in 2002. In short, the shipyard took 30 years to build a dozen ships. Since 2000, it has had six destroyers/frigates on order, the first of these may join the Navy in 2011 and the last, even with some miraculous increase in productivity, by 2020. In this background, the decision to ask this yard to produce three more frigates within the same time frame is seriously flawed and totally out of touch with reality. It can hardly begin work on these, leave aside exaggerated claims, until those already in its order book are got ready and delivered. So, what is being said, in effect, is that the new frigates would come to the Navy from MDL only after 2020. The picture at GRSE is worse. This yard was asked to build three frigates in 1986, to be delivered by 1994; they were actually delivered by 2002, double the earlier time frame offered by GRSE. No more orders were given taking into account this unsatisfactory performance. The decision to now ask this yard to produce three frigates for delivery by 2020 i.e. in eleven years, when a suitable collaborator is still to be selected, is clearly something surreal; it is just not going to happen. Expertise in building complex warships is not something that comes up overnight built on pious hopes.There have been claims that technology transfer arrangements for the new ships with the chosen collaborator will involve modular construction techniques which will permit work to be progressed faster than has been possible hitherto. This is debatable. Not only does this involve the availability of very heavy duty cranes (which can be got) but availability of space where huge sections can be put together before being taken for assembly.These additional areas are just not there at MDL which is already loaded with the orders mentioned above, not to speak of the six Scorpene class submarines whose construction in that yard is also running behind time by two to three years, mainly because neither the required facilities nor expertise has been built up as originally claimed. As for the GRSE, there is some cushion in terms of space but manpower skills are way behind that of MDL. So, any expectations that results will quickly move from dismal to brilliant are misplaced, to say the least.The story at MDL is not much different. But in these 30-odd years, gaps have been successively filled by purchases from abroad, five destroyers from the erstwhile USSR in the 1980s, three frigates from Russia in the 2000s followed by orders for another three of that class, to be delivered in the next three to four years. This has been a wise approach, which has enabled the Navy to remain afloat when dependence on indigenous sources only would have surely been suicidal. There is need for judicious balancing of the two avenues, local construction and import. In earlier imports of frigates and destroyers, there was no real transfer of technology. So our shipyards did not benefit too much. We should learn from those experiences as we select our options for the future.The acquisition of six new frigates offers exactly that opportunity, to the advantage of the yards as well as the Navy. The first two ships should be bought from the chosen foreign yard and while those vessels are under construction, personnel from MDL and GRSE should be deputed to gain familiarity with the methods and technologies being used as both will be new. This association will also enable our workers to differentiate between those areas which require critical attention and those which are familiar. They will then be better able to handle indigenous construction.This process was followed very advantageously when four submarines were acquired from Germany in the 1980s and early 1990s. The first two were bought outright from HDW, the German shipyard, and workers from MDL attended their construction. Consequently, time and cost overruns with the two built locally thereafter were minimal. If this same route is followed for the frigates, the first two could be delivered within five to six years, with the remaining four coming later. This would plug the gaps in the Navy’s force levels quicker while making the indigenous process more confident and capable.In short, the decision to build all six ships locally is not consistent with the need to supplement force levels quickly while developing indigenous capabilities. It should be reviewed. Exaggerated and optimistic claims by the local shipyards are not new and have been made repeatedly over the decades. That mistaken assessment of capability is natural, even understandable, but it should not cloud decision-making, which should be based on awareness of ground realities and a pragmatic view of what is probable. Hoping against hope is not the way to go.

ASIAN DEFENCE: Shortage of warships in Indian Navy
 
First stage of sea trial of Akula-II class 'Nerpa' SSN for India completed.



The first stage of new sea trials of Russia's Nerpa nuclear attack submarine, which was damaged in a fatal accident in previous tests, has been successfully completed, the Amur shipyard said on Monday. The vessel resumed sea trials on July 10 in the Sea of Japan following extensive repairs. "The first set of sea trials has been successfully completed according to schedule," a shipyard official told RIA Novosti. "The sub is back at the in Bolshoy Kamen in the Primorye Territory, and it is getting ready for the second stage of the scheduled testing," the official said, adding that some equipment for performance checking and adjustment work will be installed on board the submarine. On November 8, 2008, while the Nerpa was undergoing sea trials in the Sea of Japan, its on-board fire suppression system went off, releasing a deadly gas into the sleeping quarters. Three crewmembers and 17 shipyard workers were killed. There were 208 people, 81 of them submariners, on board the vessel at the time. Following the repairs, which cost an estimated 1.9 billion rubles ($60 million), the submarine was cleared for final sea trials before being commissioned with the Russian Navy, and will be leased to the Indian Navy by the end of 2009. India reportedly paid $650 million for a 10-year lease of the 12,000-ton K-152 Nerpa, an Akula II class nuclear-powered attack submarine. Akula II class vessels are considered the quietest and deadliest of all Russian nuclear-powered attack submarines.Akula-II class 'Nerpa' nuclear-powered attack submarine, which is likely to be operational with the Indian Navy much before New Delhi's indigenous 'INS Arihant'.

ASIAN DEFENCE: First stage of sea trial of Akula-II class 'Nerpa' SSN for India completed
 

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