Centre likely to cancel minesweeper warship deal

According to media reports, the contract which was signed three years ago involved a middleman.

In 2011, after years of negotiations, the previous UPA government headed by Dr Manmohan Singh signed the deal which included the purchase of two mine-sweepers from Korea for 2,700 crores.

The deal also included another six would be manufactured in India with the Korean firm sharing its technology for an additional 6,000 crores.

Recently, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, recently red-flagged the deal which was signed with South Korean manufacturer Kanganam.

But since the Korean firm itself made the disclosure, the Government didn't blascklisted it.

Navy Chief Admiral RK Dhowan had last week said the force level of the minesweeper vessels has gone down and new ones are "required urgently".

It has been learnt that state-run Goa Ship Yard has been asked to acquire technology from a foreign firm and build the seven mine-sweepers in the next seven years. The first is expected to be ready in 2019.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar will chair his maiden meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) on Saturday during which a decision is to be made likely.

After taking over, Parrikar had made it clear that the acquisition process under him would not only be transparent, but also fast.

He has promised to speed up the acquisition and upgradation process in the armed forces.

Mine-sweepers are used to locate and destroy underwater mines planted by the enemy; they are crucial in keeping sea lanes open and safe for trade and security.

The country has 14 ports which handle about 90 percent of the total volume of trade, but  only seven operational mine-sweepers for the east and west coasts.