New Delhi, Jan 13
Indian Navy bid a poignant farewell to three stalwart ships—Cheetah, Guldar, and Kumbhir—on January 12, 2024, concluding their distinguished four-decade service to the nation. The decommissioning ceremony, held at Port Blair, featured the time-honoured tradition of lowering the National Flag, the Naval Ensign, and Decommissioning Pennants at sunset, symbolizing the end of an illustrious era.
Commissioned between 1984 and 1986, these Polnocny class Landing Ships were constructed at the Gdynia Shipyard in Poland. In the presence of Ambassadors S K Arora and A K Das to Poland, Cheetah, Guldar, and Kumbhir became integral parts of the Indian Navy. Initially stationed at Kochi, Chennai, and Visakhapatnam, these ships later joined the Andaman and Nicobar Command, where they served diligently until their decommissioning.
Throughout their nearly 40 years of active Naval service, these ships collectively traversed about 17 lakh nautical miles, spending over 12,300 days at sea. Noteworthy for their role as amphibian platforms, they conducted over 1300 beaching operations, facilitating the landing of army troops ashore.
These ships played pivotal roles in maritime security missions and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations. Operation Aman during IPKF operations, Operation Tasha in 1990 to control smuggling and illegal immigration, and commendable relief efforts post the 1997 cyclone off Sri Lanka and the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami stands out in their distinguished service record.
The decommissioning ceremony witnessed the presence of esteemed dignitaries, including Air Marshal Saju Balakrishnan, Commander-in-Chief Andaman and Nicobar Command, Vice Admiral Tarun Sobti, Deputy Chief of Naval Staff, Flag Officers, former Commanding Officers, and the commissioning crew. The occasion holds a unique significance as three warships of the same class bid farewell simultaneously, marking the closure of a remarkable chapter in the history of the Indian Navy.