Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India]: The Indian Navy commissioned the indigenously built stealth-guided missile destroyer INS Imphal on Tuesday in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Navy chief Admiral R Hari Kumar, Maharashtra Chief Minister Ekanth Shinde and other dignitaries.
Speaking at the commissioning ceremony Admiral Hari Kumar said that the INS Imphal is the first warship to be named after a prominent city of the north-east.
“Named the capital of Manipur, she is the first warship to represent a prominent city of north-east Bharat, aptly highlighting the importance attached by the government to this region,” Kumar said.
Admiral Hari Kumar said that INS Imphal has been fully conceptualised, designed and constructed indigenously, representing Indian Navy’s commitment to the vision of Aatma Nirbharta.
“Imphal is the third in the Project 15B class of guided missile stealth destroyers and as is the case with her predecessors, she has been fully conceptualised, designed and constructed indigenously. Thus, she has the distinction of being a shining symbol of Bharatiya Nausena’s unflinching commitment to the vision of Aatma Nirbharta, as well as being a testament to ‘Ek Bharat Shreshta Bharat’,” the Navy Chief said.
“INS Imphal will not only tackle physical threats that emanate at or from the seas, but more importantly, through a demonstrated strength of an integrated Bharat, she will deter nefarious designs trying to subvert our national unity,” Admiral Hari Kumar said.
“Once commissioned, the ship’s crew will comprise personnel from every cross-section of our society, from every region and state of our demographically rich country – all forged into one strong team that is ready to stake their lives for each other and for our sacred Tiranga, reflecting Bharat’s inherent unity,” the Navy Chief added.
Admiral Hari Kumar said that currently the Navy has four Destroyers of Project 15B and 15A class deployed to counter piracy and drone attacks on merchant shipping. Also the P8I Aircraft, Dorniers, Sea Guardians, Helicopters & Coast Guard Ships all deployed jointly to counter these threats.
The ship was delivered by the Mazagon Dock Ltd to the Indian Navy on October 20, 2023. A guided missile destroyer with a displacement of 7,400 tons and an overall length of 164 meters, Imphal is a potent and versatile platform equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and sensors, including surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles and torpedoes.
Powered by Combined Gas and Gas (COGAG) propulsion, she is capable of achieving speeds in excess of 30 knots (56 km/hr). The ship boasts of a high indigenous content of approximately 75 per cent that includes the following: Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missiles (BEL, Bangalore), BrahMos Surface-to-Surface Missiles (BrahMos Aerospace, New Delhi), Indigenous Torpedo Tube Launchers (Larsen & Toubro, Mumbai), Anti-Submarine Indigenous Rocket Launchers (Larsen & Toubro, Mumbai) and 76mm Super Rapid Gun Mount (BHEL, Haridwar).
Imphal’s keel was laid on May 19, 2017, and the ship was launched into water on April 20, 2019.
