DRDO says Vizag incident 'industrial, not related to Navy'

DRDO, inquiring into the March 8 accident at Visakhapatnam, in which one civilian worker was killed and two injured, today said "it was not related to the Navy but an industrial accident."

"What happened at Visakhapatnam has nothing to do with the Navy. It was an industrial accident," DRDO Director General Avinash Chander said.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a function, Chander said a DRDO team at the accident site right now was inspecting and it would take probably another week to exactly analyse.

"Also, we have to see whether there was a human error which caused this or any equipment. That's why it will take some time and our team are on the job," he said.

The Scientific Advisor to the Defence Minister said when components are made, they go through various levels of testing before they are cleared for use. "Therefore, there was this system, which was getting tested. Naturally, when you test, there can be malfunctions."

"We are going to ensure that whatever causes we will find, appropriate measures will be taken to ensure that such events will not take place. A higher level of safety will be incorporated," the Defence Secretary (R&D) said.

One person was killed and two injured in an accident at a site of under-construction nuclear submarine at Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam on March 8.

DRDO chief had ordered for an inquiry into the accident onboard the follow-up submarine of warship INS Arihant.

The incident took place when the pressure of the hydraulic tank of the Arihant class submarine was being tested and the tank's lid fell on the workers of L&T at Building-5 of the ship building centre.

The under-construction nuclear submarine was a follow-up of the Navy's warship INS Arihant.

Under the Arihant class submarine development programme, India is building around three submarines which have not yet been named so far.

The first vessel of the class INS Arihant is expected to be launched for sea trials within a month or two and these are expected to be completed within this year.

Recently, Navy officials had said that after the trials of INS Arihant are completed, it would be ready for induction into operational service.

The ATV project is directly under the DRDO and the Navy plays a significant role in it.