INS Gomati Decommissioned At Naval Dockyard
By A Draft Colaba Correspondent
The Indian Navy decommissioned INS Gomati - a Godavari class guided-missile frigate - having served the nation and the Indian Navy with great distinction for 34 eventful years at sunset at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai on 28 May 2022, in an elegant, solemn and poignant ceremony. The ship was paid off under the command of Captain Sudip Malik.
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| GLORIOUS: INS Gomati was decommissioned after serving the Indian Navy for 34 years |
INS Gomati derives her name from the vibrant river Gomti and was commissioned on 16 April 1988 by the then Defence Minister K C Pant at Mazagon Dock Ltd, Bombay. The third ship of the Godavari class guided-missile frigates, INS Gomati was also the oldest warrior of the Western Fleet when decommissioned.
During her service, she participated in several operations including Operation Cactus, Parakram and Rainbow, and several bilateral and multinational naval exercises. For her remarkable spirit and stellar contribution to the national maritime security, she was twice awarded the coveted Unit Citation, in 2007-08 and later again in 2019-20.
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| COMBATIVE: During her service, INS Gomati participated in Operation Cactus, Parakram and Rainbow |
After her decommissioning, the ship's legacy will be kept alive in an open air museum being set up on the picturesque banks of the eponymous river Gomti in Lucknow where several of her combat systems will be displayed as military and war relics.
Vice Admiral, Flag Officer-in-Command, Western Naval Command Ajendra Bahadur Singh said Gomati was designed by the Indian Navy and built in an Indian shipyard and these were initial steps towards an Atmanirbhar Bharat. He added that INS Gomati will be commissioned in a new avatar in the Indian Navy.
