One more step to strengthen naval powers: Akula class submarine will be the jewel of marine defence

New Delhi, March 4: India is set to sign a $3-billion deal with Russia this week to lease another nuclear attack submarine that will be customized and fitted with indigenous communications systems and sensors. Sources told media that the intergovernmental agreement for the submarine lease is likely to be inked on March 7 and that the vessel will be ready by 2025 after an extensive building programme on mothballed hulls at a Russian shipyard.

Once the Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) is signed between India and Russia, the submarine will be put through a 72-month deep refit and rebuild, where the nuclear reactor will be replaced and a number of indigenous systems will be installed on board.

The deal for the Akula class submarine, dubbed Chakra III after the first two similar vessels India obtained from Russia will be the biggest signed with Moscow since the $5.5-billion contract for the S-400 air defence system was finalised last year.

Operating a nuclear attack submarine or SSN — it’s powered by a nuclear reactor but armed with conventional weapons — gives India significant strike capability in the region. These vessels can remain underwater for months, making them almost impossible to detect and are a big deterrence for enemy vessels in the region.

The work requires a complete build-up and activation of the nuclear reactor that powers it and the fitment of a large number of unspecified Indian original systems for communication and domain area awareness.

This will be the third Russian nuclear submarine to be operated by India, starting from 1988 when the original INS Chakra was taken on a three-year lease. The second was inducted in 2012 after a prolonged refit that saw a time delay. The Akula submarines are considered to be next only to newer US nuclear submarines when it comes to stealth and attack capabilities.

Indian personnel involved in the project are likely to get significant expertise in working on such submarines that will come in handy for the indigenous nuclear attack submarine programme that has been approved. Design work on a new class of Indian SSNs has commenced but there is no clarity about when it will be completed. The build process started at a domestic shipyard.