Indian Navy Ship Kalpeni visits Colombo

Indian Navy’s ship, INS Kalpeni, has arrived in Colombo.

The Sri Lanka Navy warmly welcomed the ship following naval traditions.

The Commanding Officer, Commander Sunil Kulhari, will call on the Commander of Western Naval Area, Rear Admiral Chinthaka Kumarasinghe, during the stay.

INS Kalpeni is a Car Nicobar class Waterjet FAC of the Indian Navy commissioned on 14 October 2010. The ship is named after Kalpeni Island in the Lakshadweep group of Islands.

The ship is based in Kochi and has the primary role of coastal surveillance and defense.

The ship specializes in anti-smuggling, Vessel Boarding Search & Seizure, and Search & Rescue operations.

The ship is on a port call from Oct. 19-21, termed as Operational Turn Around.

The ship brought essential technical support tools to be handed over to the Sri Lanka Navy.

In addition to taking in replenishment, the ship’s crew will visit places of importance in and around Colombo.

It may be recalled INS Kabra, a similar class of ship, visited Colombo in January 2024 and handed over spares to the Sri Lanka Navy and Airforce.

Visits by Indian Navy & Coast Guard ships and submarines aim to achieve bonhomie and interoperability between the two neighboring navies.

The visit further strengthens the bilateral cooperation and camaraderie between the two Navies in keeping with India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy and the Prime Minister’s vision of ‘SAGAR’, which stands for “Security and Growth for all in the Region.”