Why in news?

• On February 27, 2022, India’s indigenous INS Visakhapatnam was dedicated to the City of Destiny, Visakhapatnam, formally.
• The destroyer was dedicated by Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Jagan Mohan Reddy, in a formal ceremony at the Naval Dockyard.
• It has been designed, developed and built indigenously in India.
• It is on her first visit to the City of Destiny for Ex MILAN-22 and Presidential Fleet Review.

About INS Visakhapatnam

• INS Visakhapatnam was commissioned in 2021. It will help the Indian Navy in dealing with emerging threats in Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
• This destroyer is made in India and has onboard state of the art weapons and sensors as well as modern surveillance radars. The destroyer will also augment the mobility, flexibility and reach of Indian Navy.

Project 15B

• INS Visakhapatnam is India’s first among four stealth guided missile destroyers under Project 15B. It has 75 percent indigenous content.
• It has been constructed by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited, Mumbai.

Features of the destroyer

• This destroyer is the most technologically advanced guided destroyer worldwide. It has a displacement of 7, 400 tonnes.
• It is the most potent warship to be constructed in India.
• It measures 163m in length while 17m in breadth.
• It has the capability of speed in excess of 30 knots. It has anti-submarine warfare capabilities.
• It is propelled by four powerful Gas Turbines, in a Combined Gas and Gas (COGAG) configuration.
• It has stealth features. It comprised of reduced Radar Cross Section (RCS), full beam superstructure design, plated masts, and efficient shaping of hull.
• It is also equipped to be deployed to fight in Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) warfare conditions.