Secret Data Of India's Scorpene Submarine Fleet Have Been Leaked, Know About It

Reports in Australia about the leakage of capabilities of India’s Scorpene submarine fleet have sent shock waves across the Indian government with the Indian Navy and Defence ministry saying that they have taken cognizance of the matter.

What is the magnitude of the leak?
Reports in Australia are that the design plans have been leaked. The outcome of the leak is that it reveals the potential and capability of India’s scorpene submarines. 22,000 pages of the plans have apparently been leaked by an official in 2011.

How has the defense minister responded to the situation?
The defense minister has taken a pre-cautionary tone and has called for patience before anything is ascertained. He has sought an interim report from the navy, which when received, he believes will give a better picture of the situation. Speaking to Indian Express Parrikar said: “We simply cannot assume something because of the small quantum of documents which have been put out on a newspaper website without any technical specifications. We have to first gauge the quantum of the leak and find out links to India. What we have before us are just claims that thousands of documents have been leaked. And in any case, what is being spoken about are old documents, going back to the year 2010 or 2011.”

Consequences of the leak?
The consequences of the leak could be enormous given the capabilities of this submarine. However, the Indian government is confident that in the event of a confirmed leak India could always exercise the option of tweaking or altering critical technical specifications.

What are Scorpene class submarines?
India’s scorpene submarines are 67 meters long and more than 6 meters wide which can displace and have 1550 tonnes displacement with stealth capabilities. The Scorpène-class submarines are a class of submarines jointly developed by the French DCN and the Spanish company Navantia and now by DCNS. In 2005, India chose to purchase six submarines for US$3 billion. These submarines are to be manufactured under a technology transfer agreement by the state-owned Mazagon Docks in Mumbai.

What makes the scorpene submarines special?
Stealth capability with anti-ship missiles is that it can be launched with high precision from underwater and surface. The missions it can undertake includes anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, intelligence gathering, operations by special forces and mine laying etc.