Surat: Discussing the growing role of women in the Indian Navy, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi on Wednesday said, “It is highly conceivable few years from now, you will have a woman admiral standing here and giving this talk. So may it happen. I’m sure it is a possibility.”Tripathi was speaking at the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce’s 9th National HR Conclave in the Diamond City. He described how women officers were being inducted into various roles in the Navy. “We have been inducting women since the early 90s. Today, we have opened all branches and corridors to women. It is a matter of time before we open the submarine arm. We have fighter pilots, and now we have helicopter pilots. We have all kinds of commanding officers of ships. A large number of women officers are coming and joining us,” said Tripathi.Speaking about India’s ability to design and build ships, the Navy chief said, “Ships and submarines are all being built in India now. There’s nothing that is going to be built abroad. We are the only non-P5 country in the world that can design, build, and operate an aircraft carrier and a Ship Submersible Ballistic Nuclear (SSBN). So it’s a great capability for us and for the country. How did it happen? Because, you know, when India’s first indigenous car, the Ambassador, was rolling out in the early 1960s, that was the time when we set up the Warship Design Bureau.“Sharing the role of Indian seafarers in global maritime trade, Tripathi said, “India today supplies nearly 12% of the world’s seafarers. The govt is making efforts to increase this, placing us among the top three nations globally. So in practical terms, one in every eight people who is at sea, I’m talking about the merchant navy, is an Indian, irrespective of the flag that ship is flying.”Speaking on the country’s maritime heritage and the role of Gujarat, Tripathi said, “You would also know that Indian maritime heritage is as old as our civilisation itself. And when we speak of maritime India, Gujarat holds a special place. This is the land of Lothal, the oldest known dock. The land of ‘Baan Sthamb’ or Arrow Pillar at Somnath, which is aligned precisely towards the South Pole. As also, of course, Dholavira and Dwarka, the flourishing maritime trading ports of ancient India.“Describing INS Surat, the admiral added, “Surat’s identity has long been inseparable from the sea. And it is therefore not a surprise that the Indian Navy decided to name and commission a ship. The latest stealth destroyer, the pride of our country, INS Surat, was commissioned by the prime minister at Mumbai.”
