THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) is expected to have all 54 of the interceptor boats, for which it has placed orders, well before the promised deadline, making its task of guarding a porous coastline much easier.
The latest vessel, ICGS C-407, was commissioned in Vizhinjam near here on Friday and four more are to be operational by the end of June, according to suppliers L&T Shipbuilding.
“Four more vessels are currently undergoing trials and will be handed over to the Coast Guard by the end of June. Twelve vessels will be handed over by the end of this financial year,” L&T Shipbuilding’s Commercial and Defence Shipbuilding head Commodore (Retd) Ashok Kumar Khetan said here on the sidelines of the commissioning of ICGS C-407.
“Our deadline for the supply of all 54 vessels is September 2020. We hope to hand over all of them three years before deadline,” he said.
Once inducted, these vessels will be stationed at various Coast Guard units across the country. Interceptors are compact, swift craft well suited for shallow water and for close-coast operations. Armed with medium-range weaponry, they can cover up to 500 nautical miles at speeds of 25 knots. If needed, they can touch speeds of 45 knots. The vessels, less than 30 metres long, are manned by 12 personnel, including one officer, and use water-jet propulsion. Advanced navigation and communication equipment give the vessels an edge in night-time operations also.
It was in 2010 that the Coast Guard first placed orders with L&T for 36 interceptors. There was a clause in-built in the conditions that half that number can be placed as a repeat order if the Coast Guard so chose to. Orders were placed for 18 more in 2010.
“All the boats are more or less similar in size and features. There might be slight changes in features, but essentially they are the same. And all use water-jet propulsion,” Khetan said.
Inspector General S P S Basra, Coast Guard Commander (Western Region), said that Vizhinjam, the southernmost unit of the agency in the state, would get one more interceptor boat taking the total number to three.