• The Prime Minister recently celebrated Diwali 2025 with the Indian Navy personnel aboard INS Vikrant, off the coast of Goa.
• He also marked the success of Operation Sindoor, India’s counterstrike following the Pahalgam terror attack, during this visit.
  

About INS Vikrant

• INS Vikrant (IAC-1) is India’s first indigenously built aircraft carrier.
• It was commissioned on September 2, 2022, by the Prime Minister at Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), Kochi.
• The name “Vikrant” means “courageous” or “victorious”, and it honours India’s first aircraft carrier, which played a decisive role in the 1971 Indo-Pak War (Bangladesh Liberation War).
• Designed by the Indian Navy’s Directorate of Naval Design (DND).
  • Constructed by Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), a Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.
• Objectives:

• To enhance India’s maritime security and blue-water naval capabilities.
• To promote Atmanirbhar Bharat by reducing dependence on foreign warship construction.
• To project power across the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and strengthen sea-based deterrence.

Key Features

• Length: 262 metres; Width: 62 metres — equivalent to two football fields end-to-end.
• Height: Approximately 18 decks tall.
• Displacement: About 45,000 tonnes.
• Speed: Up to 28 knots (around 52 km/h); Range: 7,500 nautical miles.
• Crew Capacity: Around 1,600 personnel.
• Aircraft Capacity: Can operate 30 aircraft, including MiG-29K fighter jets, Kamov-31, and MH-60R multirole helicopters.
• Flight Deck Area: Comparable to two Olympic-sized swimming pools.
• Propulsion: Four General Electric LM2500 gas turbines generating 88 MW power.
• Facilities: With 16-bed hospital, 2,400 compartments and 250 tankers of fuel, it functions as a ‘city at sea.’
• Technology: Equipped with advanced combat management systems, automated sensors, air traffic control, and self-defense systems.
• Operational Status: Achieved Final Operational Clearance (FOC) in 2024 and is now part of the Western Naval Command.

Strategic Significance

• Enhances India’s naval power projection in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
• Symbol of technological self-reliance under the Make in India initiative.
• Positions India among the few countries (like the US, UK, France, Russia, China) capable of designing and constructing aircraft carriers.
• Acts as a floating airbase, crucial for humanitarian and disaster relief (HADR) operations.
  

Key Facts Recap

MCQ

Q. Consider the following statements about INS Vikrant:

1. INS Vikrant is India’s first indigenously designed and built aircraft carrier, commissioned in 2022.
2. It was constructed by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited under the Make in India initiative.
3. The warship can operate up to 30 aircraft, including MiG-29K fighter jets and helicopters.
4. It has achieved final operational clearance and operates under the Western Naval Command.
   

Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1, 3, and 4 only
(c) 2 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, and 4

Answer (b)

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