KARWAR: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, accompanied by Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh, on Thursday reviewed the ongoing works at the Project Seabird Phase II-A site at the Karwar Naval Base, the country’s largest naval infrastructure project which aims at providing fleet support and maintenance of warships.
The expanded naval complex will be able to support several major warships and at least 30 vessels, submarines and yard crafts. A state-of-the-art Naval Air Base and maintenance section is also said to be the part of the Phase II-A project, which is an extension of the Naval base totally spread across over 11,000 acres. The project was delayed for some time as the land earmarked for it was forest land and was cleared after the visit of former Defence Minister Nirmala Sitaraman.
The Phase II-A project, located on hilly terrain along the coast, involves several technical and environmental challenges. A significant part of the work will be carried out by reclaiming a part of the sea. Rajnath Singh, who was on his first visit, had a hectic schedule with several field visits and briefings regarding the progress of works. He visited the Ship Lift tower, which, according to naval sources, is a new concept where an entire ship will be lifted to the jetty.
The Raksha Mantri, accompanied by Admiral Karambir Singh, also did an aerial survey of the Naval area before he landed at the Naval base. On arrival, he was received by Vice Admiral R Hari Kumar, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, and Rear Admiral Mahesh Singh, Flag Officer Commanding, Karnataka Naval Area. He also interacted with the Naval staff and others.