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Record for GSL in first fast patrol vessel delivery to Mauritius

By on October 12, 2016

Indo-Mauritian Defence Co-operation got another fillip with the delivery of its first fast patrol vessel, MCGS Victory (50 metres long), designed and built in-house by Goa Shipyard Limited for the Mauritius coast guard last month.

The ship was ceremonially handed over by chairman and managing director of Goa Shipyard Ltd RAdm Shekhar Mital, NM (Retd), to commissioner of the Mauritius police force K Jhugroo, in the presence of Mauritian officials, commandant, national coast guard captain Saurabh Thakur, CO CGS Victory Lt Cdr Y Pramod, project officer Lt Cdr Girish Kumar HL, director (operations) of GSL S P Raikar, director (CPP&BD) Cmde BB Nagpal, and other dignitaries.

RAdm Mital said, “The contract of the vessel was signed on May 17 2014 and the keel was laid on December 01 that year. The vessel was launched on February 29 this year by Goa’s first lady Smita Laxmikant Parsekar. Despite all the challenges, including delay of over six months in supply of steel and being the first ship of the series, we have successfully delivered the vessel as per contractual schedule of September 2016, within 20 months of laying the keel which is a record in itself. It is in line with GSL’s recent track record of timely deliveries and shows the dedication and commitment of all the stakeholders involved.” He thanked the government of Mauritius, ministry of defence, state government and local authorities for providing all the necessary assistance, which has enabled GSL to achieve new milestones in the performance.

Commissioner of Mauritius police K Jhugroo lauded the excellent work done in the shipyard and complemented GSL for delivery of the state-of-the-art ship for their force. He also complimented the GSL work force on their working skills and positive attitude, which is an example for others to emulate.

The vessel is primarily designed for coastal patrolling, anti-piracy, anti-smuggling, anti-drug surveillance, anti-poaching operations, and search and rescue operations. The vessel is fitted with a 30 mm CRN-91 gun, 12.7 mm heavy machine guns and 7.62 mm medium machine guns besides state-of-the-art navigation and communication equipment. It is capable of achieving a high speed of 35 knots.

GSL is the largest exporter of ships from the Indian subcontinent and is presently executing export orders worth `1200 crores. It prides itself in timely delivery of ships at a ‘fixed cost’ and enjoys very strong execution skills.