INSVikrant was a Majestic-class aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy. The ship was laid down as HMS Hercules for the British Royal Navy during World War II, but was put on hold when the war ended. India purchased the incomplete carrier in 1957, and construction was completed in 1961. Vikrant was commissioned as the first aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy and played a key role in enforcing the naval blockade of East Pakistan during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.
The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates significantly in the Persian Gulf Region, the Horn of Africa, the Strait of Malacca, and routinely conducts anti-piracy operations and partners with other navies in the region. It also conducts routine two to three month-long deployments in the South and East China seas as well as in the western Mediterranean sea simultaneously.
Indian Coast Guard (ICG) is a maritime law enforcement and search and rescue agency of India with jurisdiction over its territorial waters including its contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone. It was started on 1 February 1977 and formally established on 18 August 1978 by the Coast Guard Act, 1978 of the Parliament of India. It operates under the Ministry of Defence.
INS Mysore is a Delhi-class guided-missile destroyer currently in active service with the Eastern Naval Command of the Indian Navy.
The Marine Commando Force (MCF), abbreviated to MARCOS, are the special forces of the Indian Navy. The MARCOS were originally named Indian Marine Special Force, which was later changed to Marine Commando Force to impart "an element of individuality" to it, according to the Indian Navy. The abbreviation 'MARCOS' was coined afterwards.
INS Kolkata is the lead ship of the Kolkata-class stealth guided-missile destroyers of the Indian Navy. Named after the Indian city of Kolkata, she was constructed at Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) and was handed over to the navy on 10 July 2014 after completing her sea trials. The ship was officially commissioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a ceremony held on 16 August 2014.
Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) is an public sector undertaking for defence ship building located on the West Coast of India at Vasco da Gama, Goa. It was established in 1957, originally by the colonial government of the Portuguese in India as the "Estaleiros Navais de Goa", to build barges to be used in Goa's growing mining industry, which took off after the establishment of India's blockade of Goa in 1955. In the wake of Portugal's defeat and unconditional surrender to India following the 1961 Indian annexation of Goa, it was requisitioned to manufacture warships for the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard.
INS Godavari (F20) was the lead ship of her class of guided-missile frigates of the Indian Navy. Built by Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai, she was the first Indian warship to be indigenously designed and built. She was commissioned on 10 December 1983, and decommissioned on 23 December 2015 after a 32-year career.
INS Kora is the lead ship of the Kora-Class of 1,350-tonne guided missile Corvettes in active service with the Indian Navy. The vessel was built at Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) and outfitted at Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL).
INS Dunagiri (F36) was a Nilgiri-class frigate of the Indian Navy that served for 33 years between its commissioning on 5 May 1977 and its decommissioning on 20 October 2010.
INS Sharda (P55) is a Sukanya class patrol vessel of the Indian Navy.
INS Kochi (D64) is the second ship of the Kolkata-class stealth guided-missile destroyers built under the code name Project 15A for the Indian Navy. She was constructed by Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in Mumbai. After undergoing extensive sea trials, she was commissioned to Indian Navy service on 30 September 2015.
INS Chennai (D65) is the third and last ship of the Kolkata-class stealth guided missile destroyers of the Indian Navy. She was constructed by the Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) at Mumbai. On 17 April 2017, INS Chennai was dedicated to the city of Chennai in presence of then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, K. Palaniswamy.
INS Teg (F45) is the fourth Talwar-class frigate constructed for the Indian Navy. She was built by the Yantar shipyard in Kaliningrad, Russia, and was commissioned to Navy service on 27 April 2012. She is the first of the second batch of Talwar-class frigates to be completed.
INS Talwar (F40) is the lead ship of the Talwar-class frigates of the Indian Navy. Its name means "Sword" in Hindi. She was built in Russia, and commissioned into the Indian Navy on 18 June 2003.
The Battle of Minicoy Island was a single ship action in January 2011 between Indian naval forces and Somali pirates, during Operation Island Watch. Pirates in the former Thai fishing trawler Prantalay 14 resisted and attacked the Indian Navy patrol vessel INS Cankarso and, in a long surface action off Minicoy Island, the Indians sank the hostile ship and rescued twenty captives.
INS Sumitra is the fourth and last Saryu-class patrol vessel of the Indian Navy, designed and constructed by Goa Shipyard Limited. It is also the presidential yacht of India. It is designed to undertake fleet support operations, coastal and offshore patrolling, ocean surveillance and monitoring of sea lines of communications and offshore assets and escort duties.
Theatre Level Operational Readiness Exercise (TROPEX) is an inter-service military exercise involving the participation of the Indian Army, Air Force, Navy and the Coast Guard. The exercise generally commences at the beginning of each year and lasts a month. It is generally carried out in three phrases: independent workup phase, joint workup phase and tactical phase.
Vice Admiral John Colin De Silva, PVSM, AVSM was a flag officer in the Indian Navy. He last served as the Vice Chief of the Naval Staff (VCNS) from 2001 to 2002. He also served as the 11th Director General of the Indian Coast Guard, which he led from 1999 to 2001. He was the commissioning commanding officer of the Rajput-class guided-missile destroyer INS Ranvijay (D55). After retiring from the Navy, he served as Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Overseas Employment Agency, an agency set up by the Government of Goa.
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