India is likely to raise the issue of mishap aboard submarine Sindhurakshak with Russia during Defence Secretary RK Mathur’s three-day visit to Moscow. Talks were earlier scheduled to be held on August 19 but have been postponed to September 8-9, considering the ongoing Parliament session.
The ill-fated submarine had undergone major refit in Russia for more than two years before rejoining service in April this year.
India, however, is not likely to seek Russian help for salvage operations and investigations as the Navy is operating the Sindhu class of 10 submarines for the last 25 years, officials said. The first submarine of this class Sindhughosh joined service in 1987 and the last Sindhushastra in 2000.
The two sides will also discuss the upgrade of Sindhushastra in Russia. At present, six of the 10 submarines of Sindhu class have undergone midlife upgrade thereby increasing their operational life by eight to 10 years.
Mathur will also review progress in the much-delayed Gorshkov aircraft carrier project scheduled to join the Indian Navy in December this year. The nearly three billion dollar carrier is undergoing refurbishment in Russia as per the Indian specifications.
Mathur and his Russian counterpart will also discuss pricing of the under-development fifth generation fighter aircraft project. It is a joint venture between India and Russia and India is likely to induct nearly 250 jets once they become operational by 2020.
The two sides will take stock of defence relations and prepare ground work for summit-level talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Vladimir Putin in November.
Inducted into the Indian Navy in 1997 at a cost of nearly $100 million, the Russian-made Kilo class Sindhurakshak diesel-powered submarine went for mid-life upgrade worth over $80 million in Russia in late 2010.
The Russian shipyard that upgraded the submarine said it had installed advanced weaponry, both Indian and foreign systems, to enhance the submarine’s “combat capability and safe operation”.
Offering all help to India in the salvage operation and ascertain cause of the accident, Zvyozdochka, part of the Unified Shipbuilding Corporation that specialises in repairs and recycling of nuclear submarines, said it had signed a contract with the Defence Ministry in 2010 to carry out maintenance and upgrade Sindhurakshak.
The craft arrived there in August 2010 and returned to Mumbai in January 2013, the Russian company said adding a modern Klub-S missile system was installed together with more than 10 Indian and foreign systems. The Klub sea-to-land missile is capable of hitting a target at more than 350 km.
“The coolant system has been modernised; a Porpoise radar has been installed and other works have been carried out to enhance the submarine’s combat capability and safe operation,” Russian news agency Itar-Tass quoted a Zvyozdochka official as saying.
The Sindhurakshak was built by the Admiralteiskiye Verfi shipyard in St Petersburg in 1995.
In June last, the submarine was floated out after the staples phase of repairs. In November-December, the submarine successfully completed performance trials and the tests of torpedo and missile armaments at firing ranges in the White Sea. It has modernised five diesel electric submarines for the Indian Navy since 1997. The companies are continuing repairs and upgrade of a similar vessel in Visakha patnam, the report said.