Indian Coast Guard commissions new Interceptor boat C-449 for east region

Chennai: The Indian Coast Guard has commissioned Interceptor boat C-449, a 27.80meters long vessel with a displacement of 105 tons. The induction of this ship is a part of the ongoing efforts of the Coast Guard to strengthen Maritime & Coastal Security along the Coasts of Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Andhra Pradesh. The ship will not only strengthen the security umbrella of the east coast but also help augment patrolling in order to prevent illicit activities at sea.

K Shanmugam, Chief Secretary, Tamil Nadu commissioned the vessel in the presence of minimal dignitaries while following all protocols amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The vessel C-449 is Forty-Ninth amongst the Fifty Four in its series being indigenously designed and built by M/s Larsen and Toubro Ltd, Hazira (Surat).  This commissioning ceremony is said to be first in-person (as opposed to virtual) Coast Guard ceremony since the outbreak of COVID-19. 

With its top speed of 45knots (85kmph) and advanced navigation & communication equipment, coupled with modern systems, the vessel is undertaking multifarious tasks including Surveillance, Interdiction, Search and Rescue, in addition to rendering assistance to boats and crafts in distress at sea.

“In the east region, C-449 will be the 10th vessel in the Interceptor boat category. Currently, we have eight Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV) and 15 fast patrol vessels, besides 5 Dornier aircraft and 3 Chetak helicopters. At the pan-India level, the Coast Guard has about five interceptor boats and seven OPVs in the pipeline," said S Paramesh, Inspector General, Coast Guard East Region. 

The ship is commanded by Assistant Commandant Ashish Sharma and will be based at Krishnapatnam under the administrative and operational control of the Commander, Coast Guard District Headquarters No 6, Visakhapatnam. The Indian Coast Guard currently operates over 150 surface platforms and more than 60 aircraft. 

K Natarajan, Director General, Indian Coast Guard had earlier said, “Our Coast Guard stands larger than many navies in the world and we further plan to boost our assets to 200 vessels and 100 aircraft by 2025. We also have bilateral and multilateral agreements with Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Mauritius, Seychelles, Maldives etc. Daily we deploy 30-40 ships and 10-12 aircraft for surveillance and in the last decade we have saved over 10,000 lives, in over 3100 missions against the fury of nature.”