Navy Warship INS Vindhyagiri Collided with MV Nordlake

Indian Navy warship INS Vindhyagiri was damaged by fire after it collided with the merchant vessel MV Nordlake on 30 January 2011. Defence officials ordered an inquiry into the incident and filed an FIR against the captain and crew of the Cyprus-flagged Nordlake under IPC sections 280 (rash navigation), 337 (causing hurt) and 427 (mischief causing damage).

The 29-year-old Vindhyagiri and 17-year-old Nordlake collided in Mumbai harbour when the warship was returning from ‘A Day At Sea’ with around 400 navy personnel and their families the Nordlake, a container vessel was being guided through the harbour to reach open sea at the same time. Following the collision a fire began in the engine room of the 3000-tonne Vindhyagiri and spread. Vindhyagiri  was brought to Naval Dockyard and evacuated, while the blaze was brought under control by fire fighters of the Naval Dockyard, Mumbai Port Trust and Mumbai fire brigade.

It was the fourth major collision in the harbour since 23 March 2010. The repeated collisions have sparked concerns about the safety of the navigational path.