Indian Navy set to salvage ship lost off Visakhapatnam

After recovering submarine INS Sindhurakshak that was lost to explosions in the naval dockyard in Mumbai two years ago, the Indian Navy is all set to salvage another vessel that went down off Visakhapatnam seven months ago during an exercise. Five people drowned, four of whom could never be traced, in the incident.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar wanted to ensure that the Navy gets to the bottom of the accident by recovering the ship and ascertaining the cause of the accident.

Sources said the Union minister recently gave a go-ahead to the salvage operation that is expected to cost around Rs 50 crore. An empowered committee under Eastern Command has been authorised to pick suitable international salvagers for the complicated job.

Though the vessel was not a front-line warship, all efforts were being made to help the investigators determine the cause of sinking. The Navy had also chartered a vessel belonging to Reliance Industries for underwater videography of the ship that sank around 40 nautical miles of Visakhapatnam on November 6.

Sources said several companies, including US-based firm Resolve Marine which had salvaged the 3,000 tonne INS Sindhurakshak, are in the fray for the job that will be assigned to the lowest bidder. The submarine was recovered at a cost of Rs 240 crore as it was a far more challenging operation. It took more than four months for the submarine to be brought out and placed on a pontoon.

The ageing Torpedo Recovery Vessel had sunk during a naval exercise. Out of the 28 personnel on board, five could not be saved despite a massive rescue operation. One sailor had died during the rescue operation while four others went missing.

It was a logistic support ship meant to recover dummy torpedos fired during the naval exercise. The officials said the vessel, built in Goa shipyard, was in service for over 30 years. It barely took minutes for it to go down following a leakage.

Officials said salvage operations are highly specialised jobs. The location of the ship is known and well mapped by the navy divers; it lies even keel at a depth of 1,000 ft.

Each salvage situation is unique and requires specific approach. Once the ship is out, the investigators will be able to conclude the probe into the cause of accident. The material condition of the ship would be examined, said the official.

Parrikar has already announced that accountability will have to be fixed to deal with peacetime military accidents. The Navy is ensuring that standard operational procedures were being strictly adhered to.

Meanwhile, the Coast Guard Dornier aircraft that went missing off Chennai on June 8 still remains untraceable. The crash, which was only the second after the Coast Guard Dornier were inducted in 1986, has baffled the force. The coast guard fleet of 30 Dorniers has clocked 2 lakh hours of accident free flying.