The INS Talwar, which is the leading ship of its class, collided with a fishing vessel late at night, barely 10 miles off the coast. As many as 27 people who were on board the fishing vessel had to be rescued after it sunk under the impact of the collision.
It is still unclear how the collision occurred, given that the area is known for its high traffic density and the fact that the vessel was of a significant tonnage as far as fishing boats go. The Navy has blamed the fishing craft for the collision with officials claiming that it was operating without any lights at night.
It is learnt that the frigate has not been damaged in the accident and that it went ahead on its patrol after the incident took place. A formal board of inquiry has been ordered by the Navy into the accident, sources said.
Even though Navy Chief Admiral D K Joshi had said on December 3 that the Navy's safety record is "not all that bad", this year has been particularly tough for the force with multiple accidents even prompting Defence Minister A K Antony to direct top commanders to enforce training to personnel to ensure that national resources are not "frittered away".
The INS Talwar incident is the second accident this month. A day after Joshi made the statement on the Navy's track record, the Navy's leading minesweeper, the INS Konkan that was undergoing repair work in Vizag, caught fire suffered major damage.
Besides the loss of the INS Sindhurakshak submarine to still unexplained explosions at the Mumbai harbour earlier this year in which 18 sailors lost their lives, several major platforms, including the INS Vindhyagiri have been lost to accidents.
via Indian Express ,
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