‘Naval Security’: Indigenously Built Heavy Torpedo ‘Varunastra’ To Be Fitted in Indian Submarines And Surface Ships

With Indian Navy on the cusp to acquire first batch of indigenously-designed heavyweight anti-submarine torpedo, Varunastra, India will soon become one of the eight countries in the world to have such a system, reports DNA.

The torpedo will be fitted in the biggest fleet of Sindhughosh Class submarines and provide crucial firepower to the naval forces. Currently Indian navy has 9 Sindhughosh Class submarines.

Varunastra will also be installed on surface ships such as Kolkata class, Rajput class and Delhi class destroyers along with Kamorta class corvettes and Talwar class frigates.

Varunastra weighs 1.5 tonnes and carries around 250 kg high explosive. When fired from a ship or a submarine, it can attain speed up to 40 nautical miles an hour or 74 km per hour. This torpedo has a range of 40 kilometers and was successfully inducted in the navy in July 2018.

An order of 63 such systems was placed for Rs 1187 crores and it was designed and developed by Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (NSTL), a premier laboratory of Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO). As per reports, India also plans to export this weapon system to other countries.