MUMBAI: The third Scorpene class submarine, Karanj, was on Thursdaylaunched at the Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd in Mumbai. The submarine wasthen towed to Mumbai Port Trust, for separation from the pontoon. Karanjwill now undergo rigorous trials and tests, both in harbour and at seabefore it is commissioned into the Navy.
Erstwhile Karanj was commissioned in the Navy on September 4, 1969 andretired on August 1, 2003. She had served the nation for 34 years and alsotook part in 1971 operations.
Today, she is reborn in a new avatar. Before she touched water for the veryfirst time, invocations from Atharva Veda were recited at the dockyard.
The state-of-the-art features of the Scorpenes include superior stealth andability to launch crippling attacks with precision-guided weapons.
The attacks can be carried out with torpedoes both while submerged or onthe surface — in all war theatres including the tropics, giving it anunmatched invulnerability.
The submarine has an overall length of 67.5 metre and a height of about12.3 metres. The hull form, fin and hydroplanes are specifically designedto produce minimum underwater resistance.
First of the Scorpene class submarines, INS Kalvari was commissioned inMumbai last December.
The second in the series of six submarine project, INS Khanderi wasundergoing sea trials and all the submarines are due to be inductedgradually into the Indian Navy by 2020.