India to build second indigenous aircraft carrier

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 17

Aimed at countering a growing Chinese Naval muscle, the Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) has initiated the much-discussed project to build a 65,000-tonne sea-borne aircraft carrier — its second indigenous carrier. The first one, INS Vikrant, under construction at Cochin Shipyard Limited at Kochi weighs 40,000 tonne and is the biggest warship India has ever built.

Carrying more than 50 fighter jets and helicopters, the second carrier will be built in India. The MoD has asked nine shipyards, including four in the private sector, in the country to tell if they are interested in the project. The warship could be either nuclear-powered or conventionally-powered using diesel and gas turbines. The shipyards were issued letters on July 10 and have been asked to respond till July 21 with the details of their experience in warship building.

A high-level committee headed by Rear Admiral Surinder Ahuja, Assistant Controller of Carrier Projects, will identify the capacities of each yard. The letters have been issued to Public Sector shipyards — Mazagon Docks Limited, Garden Reach Shipbuilder and Engineers, Hindustan Shipyards Limited, Cochin Shipyard Limited and Goa Shipyard Limited.

Besides this the letters have been issued to four private yards — Larsen and Toubro, ABG, Bharti and Pipapav.

There has been talk about the second indigenous carrier and is part of the Navy’s doctrine of having a three-carrier force. The INS Vikramaditya from Russia was inducted in November 2013. The INS Viraat is on its last legs and the INS Vikrant shall replace it in some time in 2019.