Righting INS Brahmaputra could take up to three months

Frigate INS Brahmaputra that turned to a side after a fire onboard while undergoing a refit at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai has listed by about 40-45 degrees on the port side and is expected to take up to three months to get it upright and on even keel depending on approvals, defence officials said.

“The frigate turned to a side likely due to imbalance during the firefighting efforts with water. However, it has only listed at an angle and not entirely like in the case of INS Betwa,” an official in the know said. It is expected to take 2-3 months to get it upright and on even keel, the official stated.

Guided missile frigate INS Brahmaputra that was undergoing refit at Mumbai experienced severe listing to one side (port side) after a fire broke out on board the ship on July 21. A sailor was killed in the incident. There isn’t major ingress of water as the ship has listed at an angle and not completely to the side, officials stated.

Preliminary assessment which will determine the manner of getting it upright will be carried out very soon, an official said. The damage of Brahmaputra is not as much as in the case of Betwa, the official added. Once the ship is upright, the Navy will undertake a precise estimation on the damage to the ship and what needs to be done to make it fully operational and battle worthy once again.

INS Betwa, also a Brahmaputra class frigate, fell 90 degrees to one side in the dry dock at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai in December 2016 in which two people were killed and 14 injured. It was made operational again in the first quarter of 2018.

For the salvage, global firms will need to be roped in, like in the past. For instance, Resolve Marine group was selected by competitive bidding from among three firms to get INS Betwa upright at an estimated cost of ₹20 crore and it took couple of months. The same firm had, before that, salvaged the ill-fated submarine INS Sindhurakshak which sank to the sea bed in Mumbai harbour after an onboard explosion on August 14, 2013, which claimed 18 crew members.

On July 23, Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh Tripathi had visited the dockyard and reviewed the situation. He was also briefed on the mitigating actions taken to limit the extent of the damage, plan to recover and undertake repairs to restore the ship’s functionality at the earliest, the Navy had stated.