India begins building six nuclear-powered attack submarines
To outmaneuver an aggressive China, India has started building six nuclear-powered attack submarines. This will boost the Navy's strike capabilities in the Indo-Pacific region. The submarine's nuclear power will allow them greater endurance under the sea as they wouldn't need to surface to breathe. Terming it "classified," Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba said "It has kicked off and I will leave it at that."
'It is odd that China gives anti-piracy operations to subs'
While addressing a press conference ahead of Navy Day, Admiral Lanba said Chinese submarines were regularly spotted in the Indian Ocean since 2013. He stated "there were two deployments alternately: a conventional submarine and nuclear-propelled submarine." He said China claimed that it is for anti-piracy operations. However, he exclaimed that a submarine is not "suitable" for anti-piracy operations; thus, threat assessment was conducted.
'34 ships and indigenous aircraft carrier are under construction'
Elaborating on new defense mechanisms and machinery, Lanba said 34 ships are under construction. Moreover, the work on an indigenous aircraft carrier had begun, which will join the Navy by 2020-end. He asserted that Rs. 40,000cr worth of projects were identified for Indian private shipyards.
'Security challenges have to be mitigated'
Lanba said the Indian Navy will play an important role in the ongoing Indo-Pacific quadrilateral coalition among India, Australia, Japan and the US. While talking about threats that need attention and mitigation, he spoke about China's presence in Pakistan's Gwadar port. He also said India is off-setting China by ensuring 24/7 Indian presence in Gulf of Aden and straits of Malacca, Sunda and Lumbok.
