Indian Navy Ship Pralaya reaches Abu Dhabi to participate in NAVDEX 21, IDEX 21

Indian Naval Ship Pralaya reached Abu Dhabi on Friday to participate in NAVDEX 21 and IDEX 21 scheduled from February 20 to 25.

INS Pralaya, the second ship of the indigenously built Prabal Class Missile Vessels, was commissioned in the Indian Navy on December 18, 2002.

The 56-m long ship, displacing about 560 T, is capable of speeds in excess of 35 knots and is fitted with an impressive array of weapons and sensors. These include a 76.2 mm medium range gun, 30 mm close-range guns, chaff launchers and long-range surface to surface missiles. The ship, built indigenously at Goa Shipyard Limited, bears testimony to the capabilities of the Indian shipbuilding industry and is a versatile platform capable of performing a wide variety of surface warfare missions.

An official release said that participation of INS Pralaya in NAVDEX 21 (Naval Defence Exhibition) and IDEX 21, (International Defence Exhibition), one of the leading international naval and defence exhibitions of the region, is aimed at showcasing the strengths of India's indigenous shipbuilding, in line with Prime Minister's vision of 'Atmrbhar Bharat'.

Participation of an Indian Navy Ship in NAVDEX 21 and IDEX 21 also highlights close relations between India and UAE.

Defence relations between India and UAE have been steadily growing since the upgradation of bilateral relations to a 'Comprehensive Strategic Partnership' during the visit of Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in January 2017 as Chief Guest at India's Republic Day celebrations.

The inaugural edition of Indian Navy - UAE Navy bilateral exercise GULF STAR - 1 was conducted in March 2018 to enhance interactions between the two navies,.

The next edition of the exercise is likely to be conducted in 2021.

In addition, Indian Navy ships have been making regular port calls at UAE for promoting maritime cooperation.

Deployment of Indian Navy ships to Abu Dhabi underscores deep-rooted friendly ties and multi-faceted cooperation between India and UAE, and will further strengthen defence cooperation between the two countries, the release said.

( With inputs from ANI )