A QUESTIONABLE RELUCTANCE

India's quest to have three operational aircraft carriers may have to wait longer, writes N. C. BIPINDRA

- N. C. BIPINDRA

It came as a rude disappointment for the Indian Navy that its proposal for building the second Indigenous Aircraft Carrier was not accorded approval. The Indian Navy was pinning its hopes on the approval from the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Minister of Defence Rajnath Singh in its meeting on November 30, 2023. If approved, the DAC would have kickstarted realizing the Indian Navy's long-cherished dream of a third-operational aircraft carrier.

The Indian Navy proposed constructing the second indigenous aircraft carrier (IAC-2) at the Cochin Shipyard Limited at Kochi in Kerala state in southern India, at an estimated cost of Rs 40,000 crore. The proposal was simple. It was only a "repeat order" for the already commissioned INS Vikrant, which CSL built over 12 years. However, approval for this proposal is still being determined.

The Indian Navy had to dilute its requirement, which was finalized by the end of 2016. The Indian Navy initially sought a nuclear-powered Indigenous Aircraft Carrier in only the second iteration of a domestic manufacturer of such a mammoth warship. However, as the government highlighted funds crunch and budgetary constraints, the Indian Navy agreed to a repeat of the smaller electric-propulsion variant and a repeat order of INS Vikrant. Tentatively, the second Indigenous Aircraft Carrier is christened as Vishal.

It is now expected that the Acceptance of the Necessity of the second Indigenous Aircraft Carrier, which, once built, will become the third operational aircraft carrier in the Indian Navy fleet, would happen at the earliest, maybe in the next two or three Defence Acquisition Council meetings, ahead of the nation heading to a general election season from February to May 2024.