India's Ageing Missile Destroyer INS Ranjit To Be Decommissioned Soon

The Indian Navy will decommission one of its frontline missile destroyers, INS Ranjit, after 36 years of service on the 6th of May at the naval dockyard in Visakhapatnam, Southern India.

INS Ranjit was the third of the five Kashin-class destroyers built by erstwhile USSR, and was commissioned in 1983.

The Kashin class (Soviet designation Project 61) were series of anti-aircraft guided missile destroyers. Modified ships of this class in service with the Indian Navy are called as Rajput-class destroyers.

INS Ranjit participated in a number of operations. Some of these include Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) operations and Operation Talwar during Kargil conflict. In 2003, the ship was deployed off Mozambique to provide security cover for the African Union Summit. It was also actively deployed as part of relief operations after the 2004 tsunami and cyclone Hud-hud in 2014.