INS ''Ranjit'' is the third of the five built for the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates si ...

. ''Ranjit'' was commissioned on 15 September 1983 and remained in service till 6 May 2019, when it was decommissioned.

Construction and service

''Ranjit'' was laid down by Indian request under the Soviet name ''Lovkiy'' at the

61 Kommunara Shipbuilding Plant Mykolayiv Shipyard ( uk, Миколаївський суднобудівний завод) is a major shipyard owned by state and located in Mykolaiv, Ukraine. In modern times, the shipyard has been most commonly referred to as Mykolayiv North ...

Nikolayev, Ukraine Mykolaiv ( uk, Миколаїв, ) is a city and municipality in Southern Ukraine, the administrative center of the Mykolaiv Oblast. Mykolaiv city, which provides Ukraine with access to the Black Sea, is the location of the most downriver bri ...

on 29 June 1977 with the serial number 2203. She had previously been planned to be named ''Porazhayushchy'' on 16 May of that year, and was built as a Project 61MZ large anti-submarine ship ( NATO reporting name

Kashin-class destroyer The Kashin class, Soviet designation Project 61, were series of anti-aircraft guided-missile destroyers built for the Soviet Navy since the 1960s. , no ships remain in service with the Russian Navy, but three modified ships continue in service ...

). The destroyer was launched on 16 June 1979 and added to the list of ships of the Soviet Navy on 30 October 1981. She was commissioned on 15 September 1983 in the erstwhile USSR with then Captain Vishnu Bhagwat in command. She completed post commissioning trials and set sail from Poti in USSR on 14 November 1983 and entered Mumbai on 22 Dec 1983. She visited ports in Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Egypt during her maiden voyage to India. She joined the Western Fleet and operated under the Flag of FOCWF till April 1999. In May 1999, she changed her home port to Vishakhapatnam to become a part of the Eastern Fleet. INS Ranjit was decommissioned at the naval dockyard in

Visakhapatnam , image_alt = , image_caption = From top, left to right: Visakhapatnam aerial view, Vizag seaport, Simhachalam Temple, Aerial view of Rushikonda Beach, Beach road, Novotel Visakhapatnam, INS Kursura submarine museu ...

on 6 May 2019 after serving for 36 years. Her last commanding officer was Captain Vikram C Mehra. During TROPEX-21 exercise of the

, the decommissioned ''Ranjit'' was sunk by a torpedo.

References

Bibliography

External links

''Rajput'' class at Bharat-Rakshak.com
Rajput-class destroyers Ships built in the Soviet Union 1979 ships Destroyers of the Cold War {{Mil-ship-stub