Indian Coast Guard Ship, Sankalp, is scheduled to visit Oman from 09 to 13 Feb 16. ICGS Sankalp will be on a goodwill visit to Muscat to further reinforce the existing cooperation in defence and security between India and Oman. The visit also aims at improving cooperation with Royal Oman Coast Guard. The ship is on a four Nation overseas deployment tour in the GCC with Muscat being the last and most important port that she would enter prior to her return to India.
ICGS Sankalp, the 5th Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel (AOPV) of Indian Coast Guard, was indigenously designed and built by Goa Shipyard Limited and commissioned on May 20, 2008. ‘Sankalp’, meaning Determination, is symbolic of Indian Coast Guard’s will and motivation to strive for excellence.
ICGS Sankalp has 16 officers and 97 other personnel on board under the Command of Deputy Inspector General Mukul Garg. The ship is based at Mumbai, under the administrative and operational command of Coast Guard Regional Commander (West), Mumbai.
The 105 m Sankalp is equipped with state of the art navigational and communication sensors and other equipment and is capable of embarking Advanced Light Helicopters (ALH) and Chetak helicopters. At economical speed, she has an endurance of 6500 nautical miles and can stay at sea for 25 days without any replenishment, thus sailing up to her motto – ‘Extending the Horizon’.
ICGS Sankalp has been extensively deployed on the Western seaboard from Gujarat to Kerala coast, International Maritime Boundary Line patrol and surveillance off Lakshadweep and Minicoy group of Islands. The ship has also visited many foreign ports on goodwill visits during overseas deployments, which include a maiden voyage by any Coast Guard vessel to Australia.
The visit of ICGS Sankalp to Oman is the third visit by an Indian Coast Guard Ship to Oman in last three years; ICGS Samudra Prahari and ICGS Vijit had made friendly voyages to Muscat port in Mar 2013 and Jan 2015, respectively.
