MV Corals is a cruise ship that operates between the city of Cochin and the Lakshadweep islands. The ship was built by Colombo Dockyard in Sri Lanka with Norway-based Global Maritime Brevik. The then Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Jairam Gadkari, dedicated the ship on January 10, 2015, to the nation. [1]
Corals has a capacity to carry 400 passengers and 250 tonnes of cargo. The vessel has 10 first class cabin berths, 40 second-class berths and 350 bunks. All the passenger compartments are centrally air-conditioned. The overall length of the vessel is 99.00 m; breadth mld – 17.00 m; depth – 9.20 m; and design Draft – 4.20 m. The ship has a top speed of 16 knots and covers the distance between Cochin port and Lakshadweep overnight. [2]
As Yemen was not accessible by air due to a no-fly zone, India chose Djibouti as a centre for initial evacuation by sea. Indians in Yemen were advised to reach Sana'a and Aden. The Indian Navy redeployed the patrol vessel INS Sumitra (P59) from anti-piracy operations off the coast of Lakshadweep to the Yemeni port of Aden. In addition, it dispatched the destroyer INS Mumbai (D62) (Captain Rajesh Dhankhar) and frigate INS Tarkash (F50) (Captain Pradeep Singh) from Mumbai to provide protection and support to Indian ships and aircraft in the conflict zone. Both sailed 1,350 nautical miles (2,500 km; 1,550 mi) in four days to reach Yemen. The Indian Air Force deployed two C-17 Globemaster cargo aircraft with a capacity of 600 passengers to Djibouti. [3] [4]
Two ferries belonging to the Lakshadweep administration, MV Kavaratti and MV Corals, with a capacity of 1,500 passengers were dispatched to Aden. [5] [6] In addition, two Air India Airbus A320 aircraft were also deployed to Muscat in neighboring Oman. [7]
On 1 April 2015, INS Sumitra reached Aden to evacuate 349 Indians. When Air India was permitted to fly to Yemen on 3 April 2015, it began evacuating people from Sana'a to Djibouti and Djibouti to Mumbai or Kochi. Two C-17 Globemasters flew nine sorties to Mumbai and two to Kochi from Djibouti. On 4 April 2015, INS Mumbai reached Aden but was unable to dock due to shelling, so the people were ferried to the ship in small boats. [3]
Over the days more than 4,640 overseas Indians were evacuated along with 960 foreign nationals from more than 41 countries. [8] [9] Some of them did not have the operational capability to carry out a rescue operation, so they sought India's help. These countries included: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Canada, Cuba, Czech Republic, Djibouti, Egypt, France, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Maldives, Morocco, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Romania, Russia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Slovenia, Sweden, Syria, Turkey, Thailand, Uganda, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Of a total of 5,600 people, 2,900 Indians were evacuated by 18 special flights from Sana'a and 1,670 Indians by Indian Navy ships from four ports. [3] [10] [11] 11 Indians were evacuated by the Pakistan Navy frigate PNS Aslat from Mukalla, reached Karachi, and were flown back to India on 8 April 2015. [12] [13] [10] [14] The air evacuation ended on 9 April 2015 while the sea evacuation ended on 11 April 2015. [15] 200 Indians refused to leave Yemen for various reasons. [16]
The following table gives details of evacuations carried out by the Indian Navy, but does not include air evacuations: [17]
| Date of evacuation | Port of evacuation | Ship | Arrival at Djibouti | Evacuees | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Indians | Foreigners | Total | ||||
| 31 March | Aden | Sumitra | 1 April | 349 | 0 | 349 |
| 2 April | Al Hudaydah | Sumitra | 3 April | 306 | 11 | 317 |
| 4 April | Aden | Mumbai | 4 April | 265 | 176 | 441 |
| 5 April | Ash Shihr | Sumitra | 5 April | 182 | 21 | 203 |
| 6 April | Al Hudaydah | Mumbai | 6 April | 463 | 11 | 474 |
| 7 April | Al Hudaydah | Tarkash | 8 April | 54 | 20 | 74 |
| 9 April | Al Hudaydah | Sumitra | 10 April | 46 | 303 | 349 |
| 10 April | Aden | Tarkash | 11 April | 42 | 422 | 464 |
| 15 April | Al Hudaydah | Sumitra | 16 April | 76 | 327 | 403 |
| Total | 1783 | 1291 | 3074 | |||
INS Mumbai and INS Tarkash returned to Mumbai harbour on 16 and 18 April 2015, respectively, after completing Operation Raahat.
MV Kavaratti and MV Corals arrived in Kochi on 18 April. The ships had helped evacuate 475 passengers including 73 Indians, 337 Bangladeshis, and 65 Yemeni citizens of Indian origin. [18]
INS Viraat was a Centaur-class light aircraft carrier of the Indian Navy. INS Viraat was the flagship of the Indian Navy until INS Vikramaditya was commissioned in 2013. The ship was completed and commissioned in 1959 as the Royal Navy's HMS Hermes, and decommissioned in 1984. She was sold to India in 1987. INS Viraat was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 12 May 1987, and served for almost 30 years.
INS Mysore is a Delhi-class guided-missile destroyer currently in active service with the Indian Navy.
INS Mumbai is the third of the Delhi-class guided-missile destroyers in active service with the Indian Navy.
Kavaratti is the capital of the Union Territory of Lakshadweep in India. Kavaratti is a census town as well as the name of the atoll upon which the town stands. It is well known for its pristine white sand beaches and calm lagoons, which makes it a popular tourist destination. It is located 332 km (206 mi) west to the city of Kannur, 351 km (218 mi) west of the city of Kozhikode, and 404 km (251 mi) west of the city of Kochi.
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.
The Kamorta-class corvettes or Project 28 are a class of anti-submarine warfare corvettes currently in service with the Indian Navy. Built at Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata, they are the first anti-submarine warfare stealth corvettes to be built in India. Project 28 was approved in 2003, with construction of the lead ship, INS Kamorta commencing on 12 August 2005. All of the four corvettes, INS Kamorta, INS Kadmatt, INS Kiltan and INS Kavaratti were commissioned in 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2020 respectively.
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 Tarkash (F50) is the second Talwar-class frigate constructed for the Indian Navy. She is part of the second batch of Talwar-class frigates ordered by the Indian Navy. She was built at the Yantar shipyard in Kaliningrad, Russia. She was commissioned to Navy service on 9 November 2012 at Kaliningrad and joined the Western Naval Command on 27 December 2012.
INS Dweeprakshak is a naval base of the Southern Naval Command of the Indian Navy located on Kavaratti island in the Lakshadweep archipelago. It was commissioned on 30 April 2012.
The MV Kavaratti is a cruise ship that operates between the city of Kochi and the Lakshadweep islands. The ship was built in Hindustan shipyard Limited, Visakhapatnam and is painted white.
India–Yemen relations refer to the current and historical relationship of the India and Yemen. Diplomatic relations between these countries were established in November 1967 when India recognized Yemen's independence from the United Kingdom. Relations continue to be in good shape notwithstanding India's close partnership with Saudi Arabia or Yemen's close ties with Pakistan.
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.
Operation Raahat was an operation of the Indian Armed Forces to evacuate Indian citizens and foreign nationals from Yemen during the 2015 military intervention by Saudi Arabia and its allies in that country during the Yemeni Crisis. The evacuation by sea began on 1 April 2015 from the port of Aden. The air evacuation by the Indian Air Force and Air India commenced on 3 April 2015 from Sana'a. More than 4,640 Indian citizens in Yemen were evacuated along with 960 foreign nationals from 41 countries. The air evacuation ended on 9 April 2015 while the evacuation by sea ended on 11 April 2015.
The evacuation of Pakistani citizens was a civil-military combined effort by Pakistan to extract and evacuate overseas Pakistanis from war-torn areas of Yemen.
INS Visakhapatnam is the lead ship and the first of the Visakhapatnam-class stealth guided-missile destroyers of the Indian Navy. The ship, commissioned on 21 November 2021, is one of the largest destroyers in service with the Indian Navy.
INS Kavaratti (P31) is an anti-submarine warfare corvette of the Indian Navy built under Project 28. It is the last of four Kamorta-class corvettes. The ship was built by the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Kolkata, and launched on 19 May 2015. Kavaratti represents a leap forward in the Navy's attempts at indigenisation with as much as 90% of its content drawn from India itself. It was commissioned into the Navy on 22 October 2020 in Visakhapatnam.
INS Mormugao is the second ship of the Visakhapatnam-class stealth guided-missile destroyers of the Indian Navy. She was built at Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL), and was launched on 17 September 2016. The ship was commissioned on 18 December 2022. She is named after the port city of Mormugao in Goa.
Operation Sankalp is the Indian Navy's initiative aimed at ensuring the security of the regional maritime domain. The term Sankalp originates from Sanskrit and signifies the concept of "Commitment". It aligns with the Indian Navy's objective of safeguarding India's shipping interests and trade routes.
 | This article about a specific cruise ship is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |