State-of-the-Art Indian Coast Guard Ship ‘Vikram’ Anchored at New Mangalore Port
Mangaluru: The New Mangalore Port-Panambur added yet another feather to its cap with the berthing of First ship under ‘Make in India’ project- Indian Coast Guard State-of-the-Art Ship “Vikram” on Sunday, 13 May 2108, which was commissioned on 11 April in Chennai. The ship is designed to carry one twin-engine light helicopter and stage through a twin-engine heavy helicopter with night flying capabilities. The ship is 98 metres long, 15 metres wide and can move in a range of 5,000 nautical miles and can attain a sustained speed of up to 26 knots. The ship is built with an integrated platform management system to enable special control capabilities.
ICGS ‘Vikram’ has been fitted with state-of-the art navigation and communication equipment, sensors and machinery. It also features a 30 mm gun and a 12.7 mm gun with fire control system giving an edge to its fighting efficiency. It is also capable of carrying pollution response equipment to contain oil spill contamination at sea. It can stay at sea for 20 days without any replenishment. The ship with 14 officers and 88 men is commanded by Commandant Raj Kamal Sinha. This Indian Coast Guard’s new state-of-the-art offshore patrol vessel, Vikram, was the first in a class of seven new generation offshore patrol vessels contracted by the Ministry of Defence to Larsen and Toubro Ltd. in March 2015 under the government’s Make in India initiative.
The indigenous built was anchored alongside Berth No 1 at New Mangalore Port at 9.40 a.m. on Sunday. It was welcomed with the national anthem and “Sarae Jahan Se Acha”. Commandant Satwant Singh, in-charge Commander, Coast Guard, Karnataka, during the welcoming ceremony said “The ship is designed to carry one twin-engine light helicopter and another twin-engine heavy helicopter with night flying capabilities. It carries four high-speed boats, including two rigid hull inflatable boats for swift boarding operation, search and rescue, law enforcement and maritime patrol. The ship is capable of carrying limited pollution response equipment to contain oil spill at sea. It is a major milestone in augmenting maritime security on the Karnataka coast,”
The other features of the ship include an integrated bridge system, automated power management system, high power external fire-fighting system, tunnel thruster and indigenously built integrated platform management system and helo traversing system. Vikram, meaning valour, has a crew of 14 officers and 88 men, all commanded by Rajkamal Sinha. With this, the fleet of patrol vessels of the Coast Guard in the Karnataka headquarters in Mangaluru has now risen to five, with four fast patrol vessels already based here earlier, namely ICGS Amartya, Kasturba Gandhi, Savitri Bai Phule, Rajdoot and the hovercraft squadron.