Nearly 160 sailors and officers on board two Indian Navy attack submarines had a lucky escape when their vessels collided at a Mumbai harbour jetty while one of them was attempting parallel berthing with the other.
There was no injury to any Navy personnel or major damage to the vessels during the incident that occurred 10 days ago, with Navy officers at the headquarters in New Delhi describing the incident as minor.
"It is a minor incident that took place 10 days ago. A submarine was attempting a parallel berthing alongside another, which is a routine practice, at the Navy jetty in the Mumbai harbour," said a Navy officer.
The Navy has ordered a board of inquiry into the mishap involving the two vessels -- INS Sindukesari and Sindhuratna -- in which they suffered minor damages.
One of the two submarines involved in the mishap had recently returned after a refit in Russia. Since there was no damage to any equipment or weapon system, the Navy said a minor repair to the submarine would be carried out locally.
But officers who did not want to be identified said the rudder of one of the vessels was damaged, requiring a minor repair. Though officially the Navy refused to respond to queries on the incident, officers said these types of minor incidents do take place regularly when attempting parallel berthing.
