Six facts you need to know about INS Sindhurakshak submarine

A major fire broke out on Indian navy submarine INS Sindhurakshak at the Mumbai naval dockyard early on Wednesday morning. Eighteen naval personnel working on board the submarine, including 15 sailors and 3 officers, are reported trapped in the kilo-class submarine. The navy has said that the fate of the officers is still ‘unknown’. You can follow live updates here. Here are some facts about the Sindhurakshak submarine * INS Sindhurakshak is a Sindhughosh-class diesel-electric submarine of the Indian Navy. [caption id=“attachment_1032325” align=“alignright” width=“380”] Image: Wikimedia Commons[/caption] * It is the seventh and the last of the 10-kilo class submarines that India bought from Russia between 1986 and 2000 to have undergone mid-term repairs and modernisation in Russia. Of the three remaining submarines, one was repaired in India and the others are still under repair. * On 26 February, 2010, a sailor aboard the submarine was killed in a fire that broke out in the battery compartment of the submarine while it was docked at Visakhapatnam naval base, though the platform suffered no serious damage. * On 4 June 2010, the Indian Defence Ministry and Zvezdochka shipyard signed a direct contract to the upgrade programme, worth $80 million and including a complete overhaul including the submarine’s hull structures. * In August 2010, INS Sindhurakshak arrived at Zvezdochka shipyard in Severodvinsk (Russia) for an overhaul and upgrade. It came off the slips at shipyard in on 23 June 2012, marking the completion of a mid-life refit programme. * The submarine has been modernized and repaired and its sea trials started earlier in October 2012. The upgrade includes improved electronic warfare systems,control systems, and integrated weapon control system. This modernization enables incorporation of new Russian missile system Club-S with 200-km cruise missile range, Indian sonar USHUS and radio communication systems CCS-MK.