A weapon that operates underwater has unfortunately become the target of water's own enemy fire. The mythology is testimony to the rift between fire and water : Who is mightier? A day before our independent nation turned 67 years old, fire declared its victory by burning one of Indian Navy's finest submarines INS Sindhurakshak (Sindhughosh class). Recently, our navy was preparing Sindhurakshak for a war patrol with armed torpedoes and was on its way to become one of the most powerful weapons to be used against Pakistan or China (if needed; considering the growing friction).
 |
| The flames that took over! |
She stood with all her glory after the refitting in Russia in April 2013 and had recently been fitted with warheads. The flames as if engulfed it and it started sinking in no time: spreading blackness and darkness in the skies. Some people even doubt that since it was inducted close to the Pak shores, it may have been a planned destruction and not an accident. On the other hand, some veteran submariners claim that since it had recently come after refitting from Russia, the latter is to blame. The repair works on which the Indian Government spent a hefty amount of Rs. 815 crores has created more doubt over the quality of submarines manufactured by Russia.
What's with this blame game? Was the Government not supposed to induct 12 new submarines by 2012 so that we are at par with the developing defence equipment of our neighbours? Not even one is in operation till now. INS Arihant is yet to undergo its sea trials as declared by our PM in his Independence Day speech! It may be shocking to know that China possesses 55 submarines while India has only 13 now(out of which 11 are 20 years old). These ageing weapons are equivalent to nothing if such well-equipped armed forces stand up against us!
Moreover, even if it was a triggered incident, we can easily avoid them by having effiecient rescue facilities. One of the navy officials said that the inbuilt safety nets were installed yet the submarine unit exploded. Then aren't our safety measures also not safe?? The DSRV's(Deep-submergence rescue vehicles)/ mini-submarines which were used to rescue trapped sailors are still stuck 610 metres deep in the sea.Where exactly are we heading to? Our navy still doesn't have enough backup systems of diving support ships like the INS Nireekshak which was also useful only in shallow depths. I even read that we had signed an agreement with US for a global submarine rescue fly-away-kit service which was help within 72 hours of an Indian submarine getting disabled underwater. Indian navy must step down from foreign over-dependency as we might become victims of our enemies' traps. Self sufficiency has always led to better outcomes and we lag way behind in this aspect. The fisc funds spent to import defence equipment is humongous and can't be ignored as just mere figures.
An aphorism goes that "A country which has weak weapons lives on the mercy of the aggressor." Wouldn't it be better if we had our own institutions to build such weapons? We won't have to depend on other nations like parasites! Well, I believe even if we don't have the manufacturing industries ready, we must have expert professionals who can verify whether the refitting exercise has been up to the mark or not ! A senior navy officer stated that such a fateful accident has happened after four decades. I was startled to hear this "line of defense"! The death of 18 sailors and loss of a national missile doesn't seem to sink in. We are busy suspecting of sabotage and work of human intelligence behind the mishap. The reality is that the lacuna exists in our own system. We have poor cost management skills and long lags in execution of project proposals.
Its high time...we pull up our bootstraps and get on with our mission ahead! Let not means of defense against foreign danger become instruments of tyranny at home!
Comments
Post a Comment