Ray of hope for bid to save India’s first aircraft carrier ‘Viraat’ as SC stays dismantling, issues notice

SC was hearing a plea by a private firm which is interested in buying the decommissioned Indian Navy aircraft carrier to convert it into a maritime museum in national interest

Photo Courtesy: Twitter/@OpinionExpress
Photo Courtesy: Twitter/@OpinionExpress
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NH Web Desk

The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the dismantling of decommissioned Indian Navy aircraft carrier 'INS Viraat' while issuing notice on a petition filed by a private company, who offered to preserve the iconic ship in national interest.

A bench headed by the Chief Justice of India was considering a petition filed by M/s Envitech Marine Consultants Private Limited, which is interested in buying the ship from its present owner to convert it into a maritime museum, as per a report carried by Live Law.

The ship was sold to Shree Ram Ship Breakers in an auction last year and is now beached at Alang in Gujarat where it is being dismantled.

During the brief hearing held today, the representative of the company told the bench that they are willing to offer Rs 100 crore for the ship which was auctioned off for nearly Rs 65 crore.

The bench has sought the responses of the Ministry of Defence and the present owner of the ship.


Envitech Marine Consultants had earlier approached the Bombay High Court with the prayer. On November 3 last year, the HC directed the Ministry of Defence to take a decision on the representation made by the company for a ‘no objection certificate’ (NOC) to acquire the ship.

However, the Ministry had gone on to reject the request for a NOC, as reported by National Herald.

The 65-year old aircraft carrier was inducted into the Indian Navy in 1987, after being acquired from the UK, and decommissioned in 2017.

National Herald had reported on December 14 that Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi had written to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to convey an offer by the Maharashtra government to restore and preserve the aircraft carrier.

"We as a nation must use our decommissioned naval ships to help citizens to better understand the significance of India's maritime history,” she had written.

A British trust too had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson asking for their assistance in saving the ship. The Hermes Viraat Heritage Trust, in its letters, had suggested that if all else fails, India allow the warship to be towed back to the United Kingdom for a maritime museum to be set up.

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