National
INS Cheetah, Guldar and Kumbhir Decommissioned
⇒ Indian Navy Ships Cheetah, Guldar and Kumbhir were decommissioned on 12 January 2024 after rendering four decades of glorious service to the nation.
The decommissioning event was conducted at Port Blair in a traditional ceremony wherein the National Flag, the Naval Ensign and Decommissioning Pennants of the three ships were lowered for the last time, at sunset.
About Ships:
- Cheetah, Guldar and Kumbhir were built at Gdynia Shipyard, Poland as Polnocny class Landing Ships and were commissioned into the Indian Navy in 1984, 1985 and 1986 respectively, in presence of Shri S K Arora (Cheetah and Guldar) and Shri A K Das (Kumbhir) then Ambassadors of India to Poland.
- The Commanding Officers of the three ships were Cdr V B Mishra, Lt Cdr SK Singh and Lt Cdr J Banerjee respectively.
- During her initial years, Cheetah was based at Kochi and Chennai for brief periods, and Kumbhir and Guldar were based at Visakhapatnam. The ships were subsequently re-based at Andaman and Nicobar Command, where they served till their decommissioning.
- These ships were in active Naval service for nearly 40 years, and collectively traversed about 17 lakh nautical miles whilst being at sea for over 12,300 days.
- As the amphibian platforms of the Andaman and Nicobar Command, these ships have conducted over 1300 beaching operations for landing of army troops ashore.
- During their illustrious journeys, these ships participated in numerous maritime security missions and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations.
Director General Naval Operations
⇒ Vice Admiral AN Pramod assumed charge as the Director General Naval Operations (DGNO) on 15 January 2024.
About Vice Admiral AN Pramod:
- An alumnus of the 38th Integrated Cadet Course, Naval Academy, Goa, he was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 01 July 1990.
- The Flag Officer is a CAT ‘A’ Sea King Air Operations Officer and a Communication & Electronics Warfare Specialist.
- The Flag Officer has tenanted the appointments of Deputy Commandant, INA, ACNS (Air) at Naval Headquarters and Flag Officer Commanding Maharashtra Naval Area.
International
First Indian Navy-Royal Thai Navy Bilateral Exercise- 'Ayutthaya'
⇒ The maiden Bilateral Maritime Exercise between the Indian Navy (IN) and Royal Thai Navy (RTN) was conducted from 20 to 23 December 2023.
The Indo-Thai Bilateral Exercise is being named as ‘Ex-Ayutthaya’, which literally translates to ‘The Invincible One’ or ‘Undefeatable’, and symbolises the significance of two of the oldest cities Ayodhya in India and Ayutthaya in Thailand, the historic legacies, rich cultural ties and shared historical narratives dating back to several centuries.
Participation:
Indigenously built Indian Naval ships Kulish and IN LCU 56 participated in the inaugural edition of the exercise. The RTN side was represented by His Thai Majesty’s Ship (HTMS) Prachuap Khiri Khan.
The 36th edition of India-Thailand Coordinated Patrol (Indo-Thai CORPAT) was also conducted along with the maiden bilateral exercise.
- Maritime Patrol Aircraft from both navies participated in the Sea Phase of the exercise.
Highlights:
- With the institution of a Bilateral Exercise, both navies have taken a step towards strengthening operational synergy and progressively increasing the exercise complexity.
- During the maiden edition of the exercise, participating units from both navies conducted surface and anti-air exercises including weapon firing, seamanship evolutions and tactical manoeuvres.
- The conduct of maiden IN-RTN Bilateral Exercise along with Indo-Thai CORPAT is a testimony to the growing bilateral relations between the two maritime neighbours and has enabled in enhancing interoperability between the two navies.
» As part of Government of India’s vision of SAGAR (Security And Growth for All in the Region), the Indian Navy has been proactively engaging with countries in the Indian Ocean Region towards enhancing regional maritime security. The Indian Navy and Royal Thai Navy have maintained a close and friendly relationship which has strengthened over the years.
Death
Renowned Classical Singer, Dr. Prabha Atre
⇒ Legendary classical singer Prabha Atre, considered the doyenne of the Kirana gharana, passed away on 13 January 2024 in Pune. She was 92.
About Dr. Prabha Atre:
- Prabha Atre is one of the oldest practitioners from the Kirana Gharana that is among the most prominent lineages of classical music in the country.
- Besides being a classical vocalist, she also excelled as an academician, researcher, composer and author.
- Her books “Swaramayee”, “Suswaraalee”, doctoral thesis on “Sargam”, three books of compositions titled “Swaraangini”, “Swaranjani”, and “Swararangi” carry 550 of her popular compositions in classical, light classical and light music.
- She also invented new Raags such as Apurva Kalyan, Darbari Kauns, Bhinna Kauns, Patdeep-Malhar, Shiv Kali, Shivani, Kalaheer, Tilang-bhairav, Ravi-Bhairav, Kaushik Bhairav and Madhur-kauns.
- She was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, the nation’s second-highest civilian honour, in January 2022. She was earlier honoured with the Padma Shri award in 1990 and the Padma Bhushan in 2002.
- The recipient of three Padma awards and known as “Swarayoginee” among music world.