Kolkata and Now Kochi – Indian Navy Ships Look Formidable

Let the entry of INS Kochi herald the change that we are aspiring for, writes Admiral Suresh Bangara.

INS Kochi Joins Fleet

• A state-of-the-art Indian Navy destroyer, INS Kochi was commissioned today by the Defence Minister at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai
• INS Kochi falls under the category of large destroyers with multipurpose capabilities
• INS Kochi is the second ship of the Kolkata-class (Project 15A) guided missile destroyers
• India currently has 42 ships and submarines on order in various yards in the country

There is an old tradition that the Indian Navy has scrupulously followed. New ships are named after their illustrious predecessors with an unforgettable legacy, names of weapons, hill ranges, rivers, and capital/metropolitan cities of our states. Hence, we have Vikrant under construction at Kochi, to replace the first aircraft carrier which was recently scrapped; Mysore and Delhi have replaced the old cruisers that carried the same names and tankers Deepak and Shakti, as well as a host of other platforms, are some examples of this tradition.

When ships of project 15A, as they were designated for design and construction purposes, were entrusted to the Mazagaon Docks at Mumbai for construction in 2001, little did we pause to comprehend the phenomenal advances made in indigenous warship building and the sheer quality of the end products that would carry the new names Kolkata, Kochi and Chennai.

INS Kochi, the second ship of this class, was commissioned today at Mumbai by Defence Minister Parrikar. It would be interesting and instructive to examine the profile of this ship in terms of the challenges yet to be addressed to fulfill the objectives of ‘Make in India’ as opposed to ‘Made in India’.

India’s Deadliest Warship

The Indian Navy placed great emphasis on the indigenous construction of warships as early as the 1960s. Concurrently a full-fledged warship design team was created as an in-house asset, reporting to the CNS through the VCNS. From building the British-designed Leander-class frigates at Mazagaon Docks, the first of which, INS Nilgiri entered service in 1972, the Navy has successfully designed and produced aircraft carriers, destroyers, frigates, missile and anti-submarine corvettes, tankers, amphibious vessels, nuclear and conventional submarines and a number of offshore patrol vessels and fast attack craft. The building capacity has been shared by defence public sector yards on both coasts.

INS Kochi and her sister ships fall under the category of large destroyers with state-of-the-art multipurpose capabilities to tackle threats in all three dimensions, i.e. surface, air and underwater. Most notably, the Brahmos surface-to-surface missile, which is a standard fit in front line ships and is a supersonic missile with unmatched strike capability. The jointly developed Barak 8 surface-to-air missile is a product of Israeli ingenuity and Indian talent to interphase complex technology to suit Indian conditions.

From ‘Made in India’ to ‘Make in India’

In order to transit from ‘Made in India’ to ‘Make in India’ we need to create domestic design and manufacturing facilities for ship propulsion systems and selected sensor and weapon systems.

We presently have 42 ships and submarines on order in various yards in the country. To progressively equip them with indigenously produced propulsion packages and futuristic sensor weapon packages, we need to overcome some grave challenges. These need both organisational and infrastructural paradigm shifts.

Private sector involvement in R&D, design and production activities has the potential to considerably enhance our ability to arrest time and cost overruns. The aircraft engine manufacturing facility in India, which also has much in common with ship propulsion systems, is an activity which appears to have gained traction recently. If progressed, it may open a new window to indigenise the ‘move’ component of our warships.

Need Organisational Reforms

The first challenge of organisational reforms involves not only changes in the current work ethos of the parent ministry but structural realignments by professionalising and expediting decision-making. This includes replacing generalists with specialists as is done in economic management of the country.

If Kochi can be designed, built, manned and operated in today’s context, why can’t we continue the existing process until we find answers to indigenising the whole process?

First, the current system of decision-making is laboriously slow and expensive. There is little accountability for delayed decisions. The term ‘opportunity costs’ figures only in audit reports which rest in parliament after pro forma examination of guilt. Consequently, the build time in public sector yards is unacceptably long. The cost of ship building can be considerably reduced if time overruns are minimised. If left unaddressed, ships will become unaffordable in the near future.

Second, if we continue to rely on foreign suppliers for propulsion and sensors/weapons, the ability of our ships to move and fight can be held to ransom during critical periods of preparedness. The friendly supplier of today can turn hostile tomorrow.

Third, it is not often in the history of a developing country that economic, industrial, commercial progress, and its populace’s proficiency in science and technology achieve critical mass and coagulate under a liberal regime in under a century. We are, perhaps, at the take-off stage if enabling mechanisms are put in place. Now is the time to act.

Let the entry of INS Kochi herald the change that we are aspiring for. ISRO has set an example that we ought to follow: Aim for excellence.

(The writer is a former Commander-in-Chief, Southern Naval Command)