Defence minister unveils crest of stealth guided missile destroyer ‘Imphal’

New Delhi: The crest of Yard 12706 (Imphal), the third amongst the four Project 15B stealth guided missile destroyers, was unveiled by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, in the presence of Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, in New Delhi on Tuesday.

“The unveiling of Imphal’s crest, adorned with the Kangla Palace and ‘Kangla-Sa’ is a befitting tribute to the sacrifice made by the people of Manipur towards India’s Independence, sovereignty and security,” the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

The crest design depicts the Kangla Palace on the left and ‘Kangla-Sa’ on the right. The Kangla Palace is an important historical and archaeological site of Manipur, and was the traditional seat of the past kingdom. With a dragon’s head and lion’s body, the ‘Kangla-Sa’ is a mythical being from Manipur history, and is symbolic as the guardian/protector of its people. ‘Kangla-Sa’ is also the state emblem of Manipur.

Designed by the Indian Navy’s Warship Design Bureau and built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), Mumbai, this ship is a hallmark of indigenous shipbuilding and is amongst the most technologically advanced warships in the world. The ship was delivered by the MDL to the Indian Navy on October 20, 2023.

A guided missile destroyer with a displacement of 7,400 tons and overall length of 164 meters, Imphal is a potent and versatile platform equipped with state-of-the-art weapons and sensors, including surface-to-air missiles, anti-ship missiles and torpedoes. Powered by Combined Gas and Gas (COGAG) propulsion, she is capable of achieving speeds in excess of 30 knots (56 km/hour).

The ship boasts of a high indigenous content of approximately 75% that includes: Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missiles (BEL, Bangalore), BrahMos Surface-to-Surface Missiles (BrahMos Aerospace, New Delhi), Indigenous Torpedo Tube Launchers (Larsen & Toubro, Mumbai), Anti-Submarine Indigenous Rocket Launchers (Larsen & Toubro, Mumbai) and 76mm Super Rapid Gun Mount (BHEL, Haridwar).

Imphal’s keel was laid on May 19, 2017 and the ship was launched into water on April 20, 2019. The ship had sailed out for her maiden sea trials on April 28, 2023, and has undergone a comprehensive schedule of trials in harbour and at sea, leading up to its delivery on October 20, 2023 within a record time-frame of six months.

The ministry said, “As part of the pre-commissioning trials, the ship recently carried out successful firing of an Extended Range BrahMos missile. The time taken to build Imphal and for her trials is the shortest for any indigenous destroyer. The delivery of the ship is an affirmation of the impetus towards ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.”

It is a maritime tradition and a naval custom according to which many Indian Naval ships have been named after prominent cities, mountain ranges, rivers, ponds and islands. The Indian Navy is immensely proud of naming its latest and technologically most advanced warship after the historic city of Imphal. This is the first capital warship to be named after a city in the North-Eastern region, the approval for which was accorded by the President on April 16, 2019.

Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral R Hari Kumar and other officials of Ministry of Defence and Manipur government were also present on the occasion.