INS 'Sardar Patel', India's latest Naval establishment was commissioned at Porbandar in the Saurashtra region by Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel.
The strategically important new Naval base, named after India's first Home Minister Vallabhbhai Patel, would be a key frontal base supporting ships, submarines and aircraft of Western Naval Command operating along the 1,600-km-long coastline of Gujarat.
Addressing the senior officers of the Navy and the Coast Guard, Anandiben said, “It is a matter of pride for Gujarat that the Naval base has been named after Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Mahatma Gandhi’s birthplace in Porbandar.”
Anandiben unveiled the plaque and read the commissioning warrant of the new base, second in the state, after INS Dwarka near Okha.
INS Sardar Patel is a strategic forward operating naval base in Gujarat and would simultaneously provide vital logistical and administrative support for all "colocated units in Gujarat area", said Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Robin Dhowan.
After the 26/11 terror attack on Mumbai, the Indian Navy was entrusted the responsibility of a lead agency to coordinate coastal and offshore security requirements and also augment naval presence in sensitive areas, he said. INS Sardar Patel along with the augmentation of infrastructure and assets would "provide the necessary impetus to meet the role", he added.
"The event marked yet another important milestone in the Navy's efforts to augment the security infrastructure in the coastal states and islands," an official press release said.