In A First, Navy Chief Awards On-The-Spot Unit Citation To INS Nireekshak

Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral R Harikumar on Monday visited INS Nireekshak here and interacted with the diving team of the ship involved in the salvage operations in the Arabian Sea.

The Navy Chief commended the ship on the safe and successful conduct of the operations under most challenging circumstances.

The diving team of the ship conducted the salvage operations at a depth of 219 meters in the Arabian Sea. This is the deepest salvage carried out in the country's waters, the Navy said in a release.

The Chief of the Naval Staff complimented the dedicated effort of the ship in conducting the deep diving operations.

The CNS awarded 'on the spot' Unit Citation to the ship, a first in the Indian Navy, the release said, adding that commendations to the crew involved in the salvage ops were also handed over.

Nireekshak had also recently completed a solemn dive off the Gujarat coast to pay homage by laying wreath at 80 metre depth, the resting site of erstwhile Khukri which sank during 1971 war.

INS Nireekshak is a Dive Support and Submarine Rescue Vessel of the Indian Navy. Built by Mazgaon Shipbuilders in 1985, the ship has been in service with the Navy since 1989 and was commissioned in the year 1995.

INS Nireekshak has been part of various diving operations and holds the record for the deepest dive carried out in the country to a depth of 257 metres.

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