To think this 18,000-tonne warship once had ruled the waters that surround this nation with her pennants proudly fluttering in the breeze. To think that once Sea Harrier jets had screamed to their take off and helicopters had hunkered to a halt on the broad, steel expanse of her flight deck. To think that once her grey silhouette out at sea was as familiar to the children of Bombay as the Gateway of India. To think that during the wars on 1965 and 1971,it was the INS Vikrant that was the sheet anchor of naval operations. Today, all these are just fragments of memory. It's truly ironic that when the INS Vikrant was commissioned in 1961, a hymn composed to Aditi, the symbol of eternity, figured prominently in the ceremony. Now the nation thinks nothing of letting this bit of ``eternity'' sink in the waters of oblivion as if it was nothing more than a paper boat fashioned by a child. If this doesn't demonstrate the cavalier manner in which this country treats its past, what does? Although this subcontinent is surrounded by the sea and despite its rich maritime traditions and associations, its maritime history is poorly documented and preserved. Now it appears that Indians are not interested in preserving even the little they have in terms of maritime memorabilia. After the INS Vikrant was decommissioned, the Ministry of Defence had magnanimously decided to hand it over to the people of Maharashtra, to whom it rightly belonged. The idea was to convert it into amaritime museum so that the vessel lived on in a fashion and continued to inspire future generations. The government of Maharashtra seemed initially excited about the project, but in time the enthusiasm seemed to evaporate. The state government couldn't even put together the Rs 5 crore required to refurbish the battleship and keep it from rusting. Considering the money that it was spending just to keep a rapidly decaying ship afloat, it is not entirely surprising that the ministry of defence was then forced to authorise the Navy to auction it.

Whether this decision will provoke the Maharashtra government to wake up to its imminent loss and take the necessary action to put the museum project into operation is a matter of conjecture. If, however, it continues to remain apathetic, it would have lost an opportunity to play host to India's -- indeed Asia's -- most spectacular maritime museum. In the process, the nation would have lost a valuable part of its more recent maritime history.