Samarth-class offshore patrol vessel

ICGS Samarth, first ship of the class
Class overview
NameSamarth class
BuildersGoa Shipyard
OperatorsIndian Coast Guard
Preceded byVishwast class
Succeeded byVikram class
Built2012–2019
In commission2015–Present
Planned11[1]
Completed11[2]
Active11
General characteristics
TypePatrol boat
Displacement2,450 t (2,410 long tons; 2,700 short tons)[3]
Length105 m (344 ft 6 in)
Beam13.6 m (44 ft 7 in)
Draught6.2 m (20 ft 4 in)
Installed power2 × MTU 20V 8000 M71L engines rated at 9,100 kW (12,200 hp)[1]
Propulsion2 x controllable pitch propellers
Speed23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph)
Range6,000 nmi (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Endurance20 days
Boats & landing
craft carried		4 boats[4]
Complement18 officers & 108 sailors
Armament
Aircraft carried2 × HAL Dhruv

The Samarth-class offshore patrol vessel are a series of eleven offshore patrol vessels being built by Goa Shipyard Limited for the Indian Coast Guard. The construction of Samarth class was motivated by a desire to triple the Coast Guard assets in the aftermath of 2008 Mumbai attacks. They are an improvement over the earlier Sankalp class, with a larger beam and more powerful engines.[5][6] The ships are being constructed in two batches—a batch of six ordered in May 2012 that was completed in December 2017 and a follow-on batch of five ordered in August 2016.

History

[edit]

Following the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the Indian Government initiated a program to triple the Indian Coast Guard force, assets and infrastructure.[7] Thereafter in accordance with it a 'request for information' for acquisition of six offshore patrol vessels was issued by the Ministry of Defence on 1 April 2010.[8] After technical evaluation and commercial bids a contract worth $400 million or Rs. 1800 crore was signed with GSL on 9 May 2012 to build six vessels.[7]

On 14 May 2012 GSL did the first steel cutting in its shipyard,[9] and the keel-laying ceremony of the first of the new class of offshore patrol vessels was held at Vasco da Gama on 28 September 2012.[10][11] The second and third vessels were laid down 28 January and 11 October 2013, and the fourth on 9 January 2014.[12] The first vessel was commissioned on 10 November 2015 and all six will be commissioned by the end of 2017.[13]

In August 2016, a follow-on consisting of five patrol vessels was placed for INR 20 billion.[1] The follow-on vessels will have a greater indigenous content of 70% compared to the 62% of the previous batch.[14]

Sachet the first OPV was launched on 21 February 2019[15] and commissioned on 15 May 2020 by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh by video conferencing.[16]

Sujeet the second OPV from the second batch was handed to Indian Coast Guard on 12 November 2020 and later commissioned on 15 December 2020.[2]

Sajag the third OPV was delivered ahead of time on 16 March 2021. The ship was commissioned by NSA Ajit Doval on May 29, 2021.[17][18]

Sarthak was delivered ahead of schedule and was commissioned in the Indian Coast Guard on 28 October, 2021.[19][20]

Saksham the last ship of the project was delivered ahead of schedule on 8 February, 2022. All 5 ships of the Fleet 2 were delivered ahead of schedule.[21]

Description

[edit]

The class is 105 metres (344 ft 6 in) long with a displacement of 2,350 tonnes. Features include Integrated Bridge System, Integrated Machinery Control System, Power Management System and High Power External Fire Fighting System. They are designed to carry one twin engine Light Helicopter and five high speed boats including two Palfinger[22] QRIBs for fast boarding operations, search and rescue, law enforcement and maritime patrol. The class is also capable of carrying pollution response equipment to combat oil spill contamination at sea.[23]

Service history

[edit]

On 17 July 2024, Indian Coast Guard carried out a rescue operation of the Indian Fishing Boat (IFB) Aashni. The boat with 11 crew and around 80 nautical miles from Kochi, Kerala faced heavy rain and challenging weather conditions. Due to loss of propulsion and flooding from a hull rupture close to the keel, the vessel was in a serious situation. A Dornier 228 surveillance aircraft of the ICG located the IFB on the night of 16 July 2024. ICGS Saksham, a Samarth-class OPV, was immediately diverted towards its location after receiving an order from the ICG District Headquarters No 4 (Kerala & Mahe). Eventually, ICGS Abhinav, an Aadesh-class patrol vessel, was also deployed aong with HAL Dhruv. The techinical team of ICG assisted in the de-flooding operations and rescued the crew members and the distressed the vessel. After the culmination of the operation, the boat was handed over to the Fisheries Department.[24]

On 19 July 2024, Maritime Rescue Coordination Center (MRCC) Mumbai of ICG received distress call container carrier MV Maersk Frankfurt 50 nm off Karwar about a major fire onboard. Immediately, ICGS Sahet, Sujeet and Samrat along with a Dornier and a ALH Dhruv were deployed by Coast Guard District HQ No 11 (Goa) for aerial surveillance operations. ICGS Samudra Prahari also provided support. As of 20 July, after 12 hours of effort, the fire in the front section of the ship was suppressed but the fire in the midship section was ablaze. ICG is preparing for the provision of Dry Chemical Powder (DCP) bags and balls to support firefighting operations.[25][26] As of 21 July, after 24 hours of distress call, the ship was 17 miles off Karwar and ICG was battling smoke and small fires onboard the container ship. ICG had decided to use DCP to douse the fire. One Filipino crew member died in the incident. The cause of the fire is expected to be a short circuit after which the fire spread to the cargo classified as International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) that was on board, according to a report. The ship was enroute from Mundra port, India to Colombo port, Sri Lanka.[27] On 22 July, ICG's Deputy Inspector General Bhatia confirmed that the fire is under control after using 150 kg of DCP bags from helicopters. There were no fire in the dangerous goods secrion of the ship. Small fires were still on, four vessels of ICG were near the ship and helicopters were taking routine visits. The ship was out of danger. No oil pollution is reported but adequate preparation has been taken Indian Coast Guard has asked Karnataka, Goa and Kerala to activate the pollution response mechanism.[28][29] By 30 July, Operation Sahayata was complete and a total of five ships, one Dornier and two Dhruv helicopters were deployed for the job. More than 1200 kgs of DCP was used. Infrared images confirmed that hotspots has reduced and smoldering was reduced to one small part of the ship. There were no more pollution risks and the ship was stable and operational.[30]

On 21 August 2024, ICGS Sujay made a port call with an integral helicopter in Jakarta, Indonesia for a two day visit.[31] On 4 September 2024, ICGS Sujay made another port call at Incheon, South Korea. The ICG officials will conduct professional interactions with the Korea Coast Guard (KCG) for topics like Marine Pollution Response, Maritime Search and Rescue and Maritime Law Enforcement. The visit was a part of Indian Coast Guard's East Asia deployment and a MoU signed between ICG and KCG in 2006 for enhanced maritime cooperation.[32] On 18 September 204, ICGS Sujay reached Bali, Indonesia for a three-day visit. The formal discussions with Indonesian Maritime Security Agency (IMSA) during the visit will focus on Operational Turn Around, Marine Pollution Response, Maritime Search & Rescue and Maritime Law Enforcement. The visit was a result of a MoU signed between ICG and BAKAMLA (IMSA) on 6 July 2020 to enhance maritime cooperation and institutionalised its cooperative engagements.. The crew in this deployment included 10 National Cadet Corps (NCC).[33]

Ships of the class

[edit]
Yard Number Name Pennant number Keel laid Launched Commissioned Home Port
 Indian Coast Guard
Flight I
1218 Samarth 11 28 September 2012[34] 26 November 2014 10 November 2015[35] Goa
1219 Shoor 12 28 January 2013[34] 21 March 2015[36] 11 April 2016[23][37] Manglore
1220 Sarathi 14 11 October 2013[34] 24 April 2015 9 September 2016[38][39] Kochi[40]
1221 Shaunak[41] 15 9 January 2014[34] 28 November 2015[42][43] 21 February 2017[44] Vizag
1222 Shaurya 16 22 July 2014[34] 5 May 2016[45] 12 August 2017[46] Chennai[47][48]
1223 Sujay 17 8 June 2015[49] 30 November 2016[50] 21 December 2017[14]
Flight II
1233 Sachet[15] 18 20 March 2017[51] 21 February 2019[15] 15 May 2020[52]
1234 Sujeet 19 29 September 2017[53][54] 25 May 2019[55] 15 December 2020[56]
1235 Sajag 20 1 August 2018[57] 14 November 2019[58] 29 May 2021[18] Porbandar[59]
1236 Sarthak 21 10 November 2018 13 August 2020[60] 28 October 2021[19]
1237[61] Saksham 22 10 June 2019[62] 14 December 2020[63] 16 March 2022 [64] Goa

See also

[edit]
[edit]
  • ICGS Shaurya and ICGS Sujay during fire dousing operation.
    ICGS Shaurya and ICGS Sujay during fire dousing operation.
  • ICGS Sujay during MT New Diamond fire suppression mission.
    ICGS Sujay during MT New Diamond fire suppression mission.
  • Sajag (20) with Dhruv Mk.3 helicopters.
    Sajag (20) with Dhruv Mk.3 helicopters.
  • ICGS Sajag at Porbandar, Gujarat
    ICGS Sajag at Porbandar, Gujarat
  • ICGS Sarthak (21) and ICGS Shoor (12) at the port of Porbandar, Gujarat.
    ICGS Sarthak (21) and ICGS Shoor (12) at the port of Porbandar, Gujarat.
  • ICGS Sarthak (21) at the port of Porbandar
    ICGS Sarthak (21) at the port of Porbandar

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Mazumdar, Mrityunjoy (7 September 2016). "Goa Shipyard set to build five new OPVs for Indian Coast Guard". IHS Jane's Navy International. Archived from the original on 8 September 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  2. ^ a b "GSL makes another ahead of schedule delivery of new class OPV". UNI India. 12 November 2020.
  3. ^ "Surface Units". Indian Coast Guard. Archived from the original on 29 July 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2017.
  4. ^ "Indian Coast Guard patrol vessel, 2 interceptor boats commissioned". Economic Times. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  5. ^ Mazumdar, Mrityunjoy (1 May 2012). "India's 20/20 vision: Coastguard joins the premier league". IHS Jane's Navy International. 117 (4). Coulsdon: Jane's Information Group. ISSN 2048-3457.
  6. ^ Commodore Stephen Saunders, ed. (2016). "India". Jane's Fighting Ships 2016–2017 (119th ed.). Coulsdon: Jane's Information Group. p. 364. ISBN 978-0710631855.
  7. ^ a b "Goa Shipyard Signs Contract to Build Six Vessels for Indian Coast Guard". Defence Now. 2012. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
  8. ^ "Request for information" (PDF). Indian Ministry of Defence. 1 April 2010. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
  9. ^ "Goa Shipyard Ltd cuts steel for advanced offshore patrol vessels". The Times of India. 15 May 2012. Archived from the original on 15 May 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
  10. ^ "Keel-laying ceremony of offshore patrol vessels at Goa Shipyard Ltd". The Times of India. 30 September 2012. Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
  11. ^ "India: Goa Shipyard Lays Keel for Coast Guard's First OPV". World Maritime News. 1 October 2012. Archived from the original on 19 May 2014. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
  12. ^ "Keel laid at Goa Shipyard Ltd for Coast Guard's 4th offshore patrol". The Times of India. 10 January 2014. Archived from the original on 31 December 2016. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
  13. ^ "Coast Guard's IG reviews projects at Goa Shipyard". The Times of India. 22 March 2014. Archived from the original on 25 March 2014. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
  14. ^ a b Mazumdar, Mrityunjoy (21 December 2017). "Indian Coast Guard commissions last of six Samarth-class OPVs". Jane's Navy International. Archived from the original on 22 December 2017.
  15. ^ a b c "Sitharaman launches vessel, asks defence PSUs to expand market". EconomicTimes. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  16. ^ "Indian Coast Guard patrol vessel, 2 interceptor boats commissioned". Economic Times. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  17. ^ "GSL makes another ahead of scheduled delivery of new class OPV PSU NEWS". PSUConnect. 16 March 2021.
  18. ^ a b "NSA Doval to commission Indian Coast Guard's ship Sajag today". ANI. 29 May 2021.
  19. ^ a b "Indian Coast Guard Ship 'Sarthak' dedicated to the Nation". PIB. Retrieved 28 October 2021.
  20. ^ "GSL delivers patrol vessel to Coast Guard ahead of schedule". Times Of India. 3 October 2021.
  21. ^ "GSL delivers 5th and last vessel of 5 CGOPV Project". PSU Connect. 8 February 2022.
  22. ^ "Shoor adds teeth to Coast Guard's policing, patrolling ops". Mathrubhumi. 11 April 2016. Archived from the original on 15 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  23. ^ a b Namboodiri, Narayan (11 April 2016). "Indian Coast Guard offshore patrol vessel Shoor commissioned". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 12 April 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2016.
  24. ^ "ICG rescues stranded Indian Fishing Boat, with 11 people onboard, off Kerala Coast". Press Information Bureau. 17 July 2024. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
  25. ^ "12 hours on, Indian Coast Guard ships battle fire onboard Maersk Frankfurt vessel in Arabian Sea". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  26. ^ "ICG ships fight fire on cargo vessel for over 12 hours near Karwar". Financialexpress. 20 July 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  27. ^ "Container vessel Maersk Frankfurt still on fire: 1 crew member dead". The Times of India. 21 July 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
  28. ^ "Fire On Merchant Navy Ship Off Goa Coast Under Control, Crew Member Dead". NDTV.com. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  29. ^ "Day 3: Fire continues aboard container Maersk Frankfurt". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  30. ^ Bureau, The Hindu (28 July 2024). "MV Maersk Frankfurt that caught fire structurally stable after 10 days of fire fighting efforts". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 30 July 2024. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  31. ^ "ICGS Sujay makes port call in Indonesia for a two-day visit as part of overseas deployment to East Asia". Press Information Bureau. 21 August 2024. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  32. ^ "ICGS Sujay makes port call in South Korea as part of its ongoing overseas deployment to East Asia". Press Information Bureau. 4 September 2024. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
  33. ^ "Coast Guard ship Sujay reaches Bali, to take part in various maritime activities". India Today. 19 September 2024. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
  34. ^ a b c d e "GSL News". Goa Shipyard (Press release).
  35. ^ "ICGS Samarth commissioned; to boost Goa coastal security". Business Standard. 10 November 2015. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 11 November 2015.
  36. ^ Rahmat, Ridzwan (20 September 2015). "Goa Shipyard readies first improved OPV for delivery to Indian Coast Guard". IHS Jane's Defence Weekly. Archived from the original on 6 January 2016. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
  37. ^ Rahmat, Ridzwan (1 April 2016). "Goa Shipyard delivers second improved Sankalp-class OPV to Indian Coast Guard". IHS Jane's Defence Weekly. Archived from the original on 13 February 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  38. ^ "Union Home minister launches ICGS Saarthi at Goa". The Times of India. 9 September 2016. Archived from the original on 18 May 2017.
  39. ^ "Rajnath Singh commissions Coast Guard Ship Sarathi, terms maritime terrorism a major threat: Rajnath". Firstpost. 9 September 2016. Archived from the original on 14 September 2016. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  40. ^ "Rajnath Singh commissions offshore patrolling vessel Sarathi". Business Line. 9 September 2016. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2016.
  41. ^ "State-of-the-art patrol vessel added to Coast Guard fleet". The Times of India. 8 February 2017. Archived from the original on 12 February 2017. Retrieved 11 February 2017.
  42. ^ "Fourth new generation OPV built by GSL for coast guard launched". Daijiworld. 29 November 2015. Archived from the original on 12 December 2015. Retrieved 4 January 2016.
  43. ^ "GSL delivers fourth patrol vessel for Indian Coast Guard". The Times of India. 28 November 2015. Archived from the original on 30 December 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2016.
  44. ^ "Indian Coast Guard ship 'Shaunak' commissioned at Vasco by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu". The Financial Express. 21 February 2017. Archived from the original on 22 February 2017. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
  45. ^ Sequeira, Newton (5 May 2016). "Indian Coast Guard ship 'Shaurya' kisses water for the first time at Goa Shipyard". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 28 July 2016. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  46. ^ "ICGS 'Shaurya' commissioned, Dharmendra Pradhan calls it 'joyous moment' for India". www.outlookindia.com/. Archived from the original on 13 August 2017. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
  47. ^ "ICGS 'Shaurya' commissioned, Dharmendra Pradhan calls it 'joyous moment' for India". Archived from the original on 13 August 2017. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  48. ^ Ayyappan, V. (8 June 2020). "Indian Coast Guard vessel ICGS Sujay to be based out of Chennai". The Times of India. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  49. ^ "News & Events Details". Goa Shipyard (Press release). Archived from the original on 30 June 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  50. ^ "Coast Guard gets 6th OPV from GSL". The Times of India. 1 December 2016. Archived from the original on 30 January 2017. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
  51. ^ "Keel For First Ship of the 5 CGOPV Project Laid In GSL" (Press release). Goa Shipyard. 20 March 2017. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  52. ^ "Indian Coast Guard patrol vessel, 2 interceptor boats commissioned". Economic Times. Retrieved 15 May 2020.
  53. ^ "'Quantum of indigenisation up in GSL's new vessels'". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 9 October 2017.
  54. ^ "Goa Shipyard Lays Keel For 2nd Vessel Of New Class OPVS". goashipyard.co.in. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 9 October 2017.
  55. ^ Rahmat, Ridzwan (29 May 2019). "Goa Shipyard launches 10th improved Sankalp-class OPV for Indian Coast Guard". Jane's Navy International. Archived from the original on 29 May 2019.
  56. ^ @IndiaCoastGuard (15 December 2020). "IndiaCoastGuard ship 'Sujeet', second in the series of 05 OPV indigenously designed & built by M/s Goa shipyard Limited, in line with PM's vision of makeinindia will be commissioned today at GSL Goa by Shri Raj Kumar, IAS, Secretary (Defence Production)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  57. ^ "Goa Shipyard lays keel for 3rd vessel of new class OPVs". United News of India. 2 August 2018.
  58. ^ Sequeira, Newton (14 November 2019). "GSL launches coast guard offshore patrol vessel 'Sajag'". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 14 November 2019. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  59. ^ "Goa: Coast Guard commissions patrol vessel ICGS Sajag". Times Of India. 12 June 2021.
  60. ^ "Indian Coast Guard Offshore Patrol Vessel 'Sarthak' launched". PIB. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  61. ^ @shripadynaik (10 June 2019). "Laid keel for offshore patrol vessel at 5th CG OPV yard 1237" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  62. ^ "Shripad extends support to Goa Shipyard". oHeraldo. 11 June 2019.
  63. ^ @IndiaCoastGuard (14 December 2020). "OPV Saksham (Yard '1237') last in the series of 05 OPVs indigenously designed & built by M/s Goa shipyard Limited, in line with PM's vision of Make in India will be launched today at Goa" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  64. ^ "Indian Coast Guard's fifth offshore patrol vessel Saksham commissioned in Goa". India Today. 17 March 2022.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Samarth-class_offshore_patrol_vessel&oldid=1246498066"