The timing of the incidents couldn’t be worse— coming even as the country is in the middle of an ambitious programme to catapult the Navy into the big league.

In two year’s time, in 2008, aircraft carrier Vikramaditya (rechristened Admiral Gorshkov) and a nuclear submarine, both acquired from Russia, are going to be inducted into the Navy.

Plus, the Indian indigenous nuclear submarine—or advanced technology vehicle (ATV)—is finally on track and currently the nuclear power plant is being fitted into its hull at the Visakhapatnam shipyard. By all indications, it will be inducted into the Navy along with Russian boat. Displacing around 6,000-7,000 tonne, the ATV will be similar in design to INS Chakra, the Charlie-class submarine leased out by the Russians in 1990s.

The DRDO has also made significant progress in development of the Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) in a bid to complete the third leg of the Triad nuclear doctrine.Called Sagarika or PJ 02, the SLBM is going to be a two-stage missile with a range of over 800 kilometers. The missile has already been successfully tested at the Interim Test Range (ITR) twice. Insiders say the missile, different from Klub or any other Russian made weapon, has not only sea-to-surface capability, but is a potent weapon with low circular error of probability.

And if this was not enough, the UPA government has given the green signal to the Navy and DRDO this year to build two more indigenous nuclear submarines after the first is inducted in 2008.

... contd.