INS ARIHANT: -
"INS Arihant is India's first nuclear-powered submarine."
when declining operational
availability of its conventional submarine fleet has put the Navy in dire
straits, it has some reason to cheer.Informed sources told that the
construction of a second Arihant-class nuclear submarine, to be named INS
Aridaman, is moving fast at the Shipbuilding Centre (SBC) in Visakhapatnam. It
is slated for launch by this year-end or in the first quarter of next year.“The boat, under outfitting
now, is headed for a year-end launch. Meanwhile, hull fabrication is on for the
third Arihant-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine,” the sources
said. “Unlike surface vessels, submarines are fully outfitted before launch,
which makes it a prerequisite for its weapons to be tested and ready well in
advance.”
The first submarine of the
class, INS Arihant, launched in July 2009, has just completed its harbour
acceptance trials and is set to undergo the crucial sea acceptance trials in
February.“This will be followed by weapon trials before the submarine is
formally inducted into the Navy, hopefully in 2013, when the country will
attain the much-desired nuclear triad,” the sources said. Concurrently,
nuclear-powered submarine INS Chakra, borrowed on a 10-year lease from Russia
mainly for training purposes, will be inducted in the latter half of 2012.Troubled by the eroding
strength of its conventional underwater arm, the Navy's ‘blue water'
aspirations remained in the realm of wishful thinking, with the force failing
to add even a single submarine to its inventory in the last decade.With the
Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) programme to indigenously design and build
nuclear-powered attack submarines gaining momentum after years of indecision
and disorientation in the 1990s, the goal, claimed the sources, was within
reach now.
Chief of the Naval Staff
Admiral Nirmal Verma said last year that once commissioned, INS Arihant would
be deployed on ‘deterrent (combat) patrol.' Although it would be home-ported in
Visakhapatnam, the submarine, armed with nuclear-tipped K-15 or B-5 ballistic
missiles and having a range of about 750 km, would offer effective deterrence
against enemies.Arihant, India's first indigenously
built nuclear submarine, cost $2.9bn. It was jointly developed by the Indian
Navy, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and Defence Research and Development
Organisation (DRDO) at the naval dockyard in Visakhapatnam. Russian designers
assisted in building the vessel.Other companies involved in the development of
the submarine are Tata Power, a division of Tata Group and Larsen & Toubro
(L&T), a technology, engineering, construction and manufacturing company.
Arihant was launched for sea
trials on 26 July 2009 and is due to be commissioned in 2011.
The trials are
being conducted at a concealed test area called 'Site Bravo'. During harbour
acceptance trials, the nuclear power plant and auxiliary systems of the
submarine will be tested for stability."Arihant has been developed as part
of the military modernisation programme undertaken by India."The
most crucial part of the trials will be the firing of the reactor. Once the
reactor is fired all systems on board are tested on the inherent power of the
submarine.Arihant will be taken for a series of high-speed runs during the sea
acceptance trials and its various components will be tested at different depths,
temperatures and pressure.The final phase of the trials will include weapon
trials. During these trials actual firing of submarine-launched ballistic
missiles (SLBM) will take place from the platform.The crew of Arihant will be
trained on the 12,000t Akula-II submarine. The submarine will be taken on lease
from Russia in 2010 for ten years. Apart from the Akula-II submarine, six
Scorpene attack submarines will also be acquired by the Indian Navy between
2012 and 2017.
DESIGN :-
Arihant's design is based on
the Russian Akula-1 Class submarine. It weighs 6,000t. At a length of 110m and
breadth of 11m, Arihant is the longest in the Indian Navy's fleet of submarines
and can accommodate a crew of 95. It can reach a speed of 12kt-15kt on surface
and up to 24kt when submerged.Arihant will be able to stay under water for long
periods undetected due to the nuclear-powered 80MW pressurised water reactor
(PWR). The PWR was developed by the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre with assistance
from a Russian design team.The submarine's exterior is uneven and the hull is
placed on a mat covered with tiles. The tiles help in absorbing sound waves and
provide stealth capability to the submarine. Compared to conventional
submarines, the conning tower of Arihant is situated near the bow instead of
the centre.The central part of the submarine's body consists of the outer hull
and an inner pressurised hull. The starboard side consists of two rectangular
vents that draw in water when the submarine submerges into sea.The Indian Navy
and the DRDO together designed the submarine. Once the design was finalised
detailed engineering was implemented at L&T's submarine design centre using
3D modelling and product data management software.Tata Power designed the
control systems for the submarine. Walchandnagar Industries, a company
specialising in execution of heavy engineering projects, designed parts of the
steam turbine.
PROPULSION SYSTEM :-
The propulsion plant housing
the reactor is 42m long and 8m in diameter. The complete propulsion plant along
with the primary, secondary, electrical and propulsion systems occupy half of
the submarine. To reduce the weight of the plant, light water and enriched
uranium was used as opposed to non-enriched uranium used in land-based
reactors.
MISSILES LOADED :-
Arihant will be capable of
carrying all types of missiles and will have underwater ballistic missile
launch capability. It will carry 12 K-15 SLBMs that can be launched even under
ice caps. K-15 missiles are 10.4m long and have a diameter of 1m. The 6.3t
missiles can carry a 5t nuclear warhead targeted 750km away. The K-15 missiles,
however, will be replaced later by the 3,500km range K-X missiles.Apart from
the K-15s, the submarine will carry a range of anti-ship and land-attack cruise
missiles and torpedoes.
CONTROL AND COMMUNICATION SYSTEM
:-
Arihant is fitted with a
combination of two sonar systems – Ushus and Panchendriya. Ushus is
state-of-the-art sonar meant for Kilo Class submarines. Panchendriya is a
unified submarine sonar and tactical control system, which includes all types
of sonar (passive, surveillance, ranging, intercept and active). It also
features an underwater communications system.
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