INS Imphal, which can fire extended range supersonic BrahMos missile, was commissioned into the Indian Navy in Mumbai on Tuesday. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R Hari Kumar were present at the ceremony.
Here are key points about India’s new warship
- INS Imphal was indigenously designed by the navy’s in-house organisation, Warship Design Bureau, and constructed by Mazagon Dock Limited, a Defence PSU in Mumbai.
- INS Imphal, which is the third of four ‘Visakhapatnam’ class destroyers, is the first warship to be named after a north-eastern city following the President’s approval. The naming of the destroyer after Manipur’s capital city highlights the importance of the country’s north-eastern region for national security and prosperity, according to officials.
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- The keel of the warship was laid on May 19, 2017. The indigenously-built stealth guided missile destroyer was launched into water on April 20, 2019 and was delivered to the Navy on October 20, 2023.
- INS Imphal is the India’s first warship to successfully test-fire missiles before being commissioned. Also, the time taken to construct this ship along with its trials is reportedly the shortest for any indigenous destroyer.
- The warship has already successfully test-fired the extended-range supersonic BrahMos missile in November. With INS Imphal being commissioned, it will now join the Western Naval Command.
- INS Imphal has a displacement of 7,400 tonne and overall length of 164 metre. Powered by Combined Gas and Gas (COGAG) propulsion, the ship is capable of achieving speeds in excess of 30 knots (56 km/hour).
- INS Imphal is equipped with a surveillance radar and can target submarines using its indigenously developed rocket launchers, torpedo launchers and anti-submarine warfare helicopters. The ship can also fight under Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) warfare conditions.
