The INS Vikrant, India’s first aircraft carrier built entirely indigenously, was commissioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday in Kochi, joining a narrow group of nations with the ability to produce such huge warships. The Prime Minister commissioned the Rs 20,000 crore carrier during a ceremony held at the Cochin Shipyard Limited.
PM Modi in his address said, “INS Vikrant is not a mere war machine but proof of India’s skill and talent. It is special, different,” Modi said and highlighted the indigenisation efforts behind the massive ship, including the steel that went into its making,”
The IAC-1 is 62 metres wide and 262 metres long, with more than two football fields. With 14 decks and a height of 59 metres, the ship can accommodate a crew of about 1,700 people and has over 2,300 compartments, including specialised quarters for female officers. The IAC-1 can travel at a top speed of about 28 knots and can carry 40,000 tonnes of cargo (more than 50kmph). It has a range of around 7,500 nautical miles and a cruising speed of 18 knots.
The Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL) started working on the vessel’s construction in 2009, and it would ultimately cost about Rs 23,000 crore. The Directorate of Naval Design of the Indian Navy created IAC-1. According to reports, officials claim that all of the cables on board total 2,600 kilometres in length and that the “electricity used in the ship can light up half of Kochi city.” According to reports, Maj. Manoj Kumar, the ship’s designer and architect, stated that the steel utilised in the vessel was equivalent to three Eiffel towers.
The Prime Minister also released the new Indian Navy ensign at the event:
Source: News 18
