Second Scorpene submarine launches after 5 years, data leak chapter finally closed

On Thursday, India launched its penultimate French-designed Scorpene class diesel-electric attack submarine, Khanderi, exorcising a data leak scandal that threatened to derail the project in August 2016.

Khanderi is one of the six Scorpene submarines being constructed in the country with technology endowed from French firm DCNS under a Rs 23,562-crore programme coined as ‘Project 75’.

A leaked cache of 22,400 documents in 2016 detailed key secret stealth capabilities of the submarines, comprising of the frequencies at which intelligence is mustered up, their diving depths, range and endurance, and specifications of their torpedo launch and combat systems.

Minister of state for defence Subhash Bhamre and Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba were present when the Khanderi was finally launched into the waterways.

Khanderi, the second Scorpene-class submarine launched on Thursday.

Kalvari, the first Scorpene-class submarine to be built in India, is expected to be commissioned into the Navy in the coming months. All the six submarines are expected to join the Indian fleet over the next three years. Sharma informed the third boat would also be launched this year.

It is a respite to know that The Scorpene project has finally been launched after a lag of 5 years. The launch date was furthered by five years due to issues related to transfer of technology. At present, the Navy operates 13 conventional submarines.

Navy spokesperson Captain DK Sharma reaffirmed that the data leak is a closed chapter. “The data was from pre-2008 when the boat wasn’t even on the drawing board. The project has evolved significantly in all aspects and there’s no problem.”

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