Navy's landing craft utility ship launched

The Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd. on Friday launched the eighth landing craft utility (LCU) vessel for the Indian Navy.

LCU-L58 is the last vessel in a series of eight ships of LCU MK-IV project designed and built by the GRSE for the Navy.

In accordance with traditions, an invocation from the Atharva Veda was rendered and the ship was named 'LCU-L58'.

GRSE Chairman and Managing Director Rear Admiral A.K. Verma (retd) commenced the proceedings with a formal welcome, followed by an address by chief guest Neelam Pratap Singh Rudy, wife of Union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy. She launched the ship.

The ship, with displacement of 830 tonnes, can be deployed for multiple activities like operations for landing troops ashore, humanitarian aid and disaster relief operations and evacuation of personnel from distant islands.

Each ship costs around Rs 230 crore and almost 90 per cent of the components are indigenous.

The ship is capable of carrying two tanks or four special vehicles and 160 troops for landing at remote beach heads. These vessels are armed with two CRN 91 naval guns, four medium machine guns, two heavy machine guns and portable air defence system.

It is designed for attaining a maximum speed of 15 knots with an endurance of more than 1,500 nautical miles.

These vessels are being built for maritime security of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal and Lakshadweep Islands in the Arabian Sea.

--IANS

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