New Delhi: India Thursday commissioned INS Arighaat, the second of the Arihant class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, with upgraded firepower, a major step in advancing the country’s naval capabilities and strategic deterrence.
The INS Arighaat retains many specifications of the INS Arihant, including the 83 MW reactor, which allows it to be submerged for lengthy periods of time, except when it refills food supplies or requires maintenance.
The technological advancements undertaken indigenously on the submarine make it significantly more advanced than the Arihant, the defence ministry said in a statement.
It can attain speeds up to 24 knots (44 km/hr) when submerged and about 12-15 knots (22-28 km/rh) on surface level. The new submarine has a number of enhancements to its propulsion technology from the INS Arihant, increasing its operational effectiveness.
The submarine was commissioned at Visakhapatnam in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Navy chief Admiral Dinesh Tripathi, Vice-Admiral Suraj Berry, and officials from the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
On the occasion, the defence minister asserted that the Arighaat would further strengthen India’s nuclear triad, enhance nuclear deterrence, establish strategic balance and peace as well as play a decisive role in the country’s security.
India is amongst six countries in the world to have a nuclear triad, after the US, Russia, China, France and the UK.
The INS Arighaat is reported to have the same hump as the Arihant, and has four missile launch tubes. Each tube can carry up to three K-15 submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) with a range of 750 km, or one K-4 SLBM, that has a range of 3,500 km. Both missiles are capable of carrying nuclear warheads, completing India’s nuclear triad.
While the K-15 SLBM is operational, the K-4 SLBM was first tested in October 2020, giving the country a credible second-strike capability, as reported by ThePrint earlier.
Built at the Ship Building Centre in Visakhapatnam, INS Arighaat is expected to operate under the Strategic Forces Command (SFC), similar to the INS Arihant. The SFC is responsible for India’s nuclear arsenal.
The most commonly known method of launching a nuclear weapon is through land-based systems. Nuclear weapons can also be fired from aircraft. But both of them have their own drawbacks.
In comparison, submarines provide a potent launch platform giving the difficulty in tracking them, especially the nuclear powered ones as they can stay submerged longer than their conventional diesel counterparts.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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