Submarines have been an integral part of my life. My first brush with
the Submariners was during the Mumbai riots of 1992, wherein, I and my
venerable Course-mate Late Lieutenant Pravin Rana got waylaid by Mumbai Police
whilst on our way back to Lonavala from Mumbai on a heady night and due to the
non-recognition of a temporary Identity Card. The first encounter with the 03
Submariners held by the Mumbai Police in the Colaba Police Station and the
grand entry of a Submariner Officer Lieutenant Debasish Saha to rescue
his Submarine mates, got etched forever in my cranium's crevices. He finally
rescued his sailors and along with them- me and Rana. The Submarines became my
passion and all through my Naval Engineering College days and the follow-up
phase of Specialization into Electronics and Communication at Jamnagar, my
focus kept on diverting back to the Submarines. Finally, the opportunity came
for me to join Submarines and I plunged into the Pressure Chamber to clear my
aptitude for the Submarines. The first Pressure Chamber Dive to 30 meters was
followed by a quick descent to 100 meters. It all felt exciting and soon I was
shortlisted for the Submarine School at Visakhapatnam.
The 06 months at the Submarine School flew by and in no time I was appointed to
the oldest Kilo Class Submarine Sindhughosh. Fresh from a well earned leave, I
reported on-board Sindhughosh with my other Submarine School mates and by
virtue of seniority, I was the senior most Officer under training on-board the
Submarine. The majestic boat was under a long refit activity and 04 of us
reported on-board whilst she was being rejuvenated at the dry-docks. To my
utter surprise, I found the first of the 03 Submariners whom I had met at
Mumbai, on the dry dock jetty. Holding a cigarette, he was standing with his
one leg on the Jetty's Bollard (a strong post as on a wharf or quay or ship
for attaching the mooring lines). He turned out to be Master Chief Petty
Officer-II VPS Chauhan (MCPO), the Submarine's Coxswain (A person who
usually steers a ship's boat and has charge of its crew). He met me with
great warmth as I introduced myself and was taken aback when I reminisced
the Mumbai events!! He then candidly admitted that the other two Submariners
whom I had met on that fateful night at Mumbai were also on-board this
Submarine. I happily stepped on-board after saluting the National Flag.
MCPO
took us straight to the Executive Officer of the Submarine and soon we were
trying to trace the pipes and cables inside the Submarine as the Executive
Officer started our acclimatisation and training in the right earnest. The
Executive Officer’s first advice was to be mentally agile and physically fit
when on Submarines and to give the best energy to the boat. In the course of
the first day, I also met Leading Seaman Satyadev and LEMP Gaikwad,
the other two accomplices of MCPO at Mumbai. Satyadev was a stalwart of the
Torpedo Systems on-board the Kilo and Gaikwad was a senior electrical mate
on-board.
The destiny
had its hidden plans and two days after my reporting on-board the Kilo, the
venerable Electrical Officer of the Submarine fell sick and was admitted to the
Naval Hospital for a surgery. The circumstances of the Submarine were tough and
it is indeed a herculean task to rejuvenate the individual systems and then to
integrate them into well oiled machinery which can withstand the rigors of the
dark depths of the seas. Due to a shortage of the Electrical Officers in the
Submarine Fleet, the Executive Officer decided to take the matters into his
hands and appointed me as his able Deputy Electrical Officer. Thus, within two
days of joining the boat, I was amongst the thickest of the action along with
my primary job- which was to learn about the systems and engineering of the
Submarine. I got onto the tasks of managing the Electrical Department and
started putting in mid night hours to maintain my Training Journal. The days
were hot and tough and the nights became longer, but that is what the life
on-board a Submarine is all about. The sweat, the toil and the tempers- all ran
high simultaneously many a times even as Sindhughosh continued to get bound
together into a lethal war fighting machine.
Soon,
we commenced our sorties into the sea after clearing the harbour checks in one
go. I was extremely happy to clear the harbour checks of the Electrical
Department without wearing the mandatory DOLPHIN BADGE as my sea qualifying
board was not yet over. The Executive Officer stood firmly behind me and
ensured that I carried out the duties of a Head of Department without
being a qualified Submariner. We used to close up on the Submarine at 0630
Hours each day and the evenings stretched to 2300 hours on most days. Finally,
the day came when we fired the first torpedo from the Submarine and she was
declared fully operational to meet the designed commitments. I had also earned
my DOLPHIN BADGE in between this phase and my Qualifying Exam went like a well
rehearsed song. Each of my Qualifying Board Members had seen me operating
on-board the Kilo and gave me a Thumbs Up report. My three Submarine Mates were
very thrilled when I offered the mandatory Rum Punch to the Submarine's
crew. The punch line of the MCPO was always a simple rhetoric- "Sahab,
Pandoobi (Submarine) bhi sunati hai!!". This literally translates
into- THE SUBMARINE TOO LISTENS!!
Finally, one day, the night fell on the Bay of Bengal. It was 2000 hrs and Sindhughosh
was snorting. The diesels were humming and the
generators were rotating seamlessly to charge the juices of the Submarine's
batteries for a deployment. Suddenly, I heard the Executive Officer's voice on
the microphone system and he wanted me to come to the Control Room. I had
finished a "Watch Under Observation"
with the Submarine's Senior Engineer Lieutenant AB Mukherjee. I reached
the Control Room and found the MCPO sitting on the Submarine's planes (Planes
control the diving and surfacing of the Submarine) along-with Satyadev. The
Executive Officer was on the Officer of the Watch chair (OOW Chair) and the
Commanding Officer was sitting on his big Chair. The Executive Officer told me
to sit on the OOW's Chair and carry out the evolutions as per the CO's orders.
I sat down on the Chair and the CO, Commander BK Patnaik ordered
stopping of the snorting and diving of the Submarine. MCPO turned back and
shook his head in affirmative and I gave out the crisp order to Stop Diesels
and Dive the Boat. As I went through the motions of the orders, I could
feel the 3000 Tonnes Kilo respond to my inner self. Soon, the Depth Gauges
started moving as the Engines stopped and the batteries took over the power
control of the Submarine. The big main motor which LEMP Gaikwad operated 03
compartments behind the Control Room hummed and Sindhughosh glided down with
ease as my successive orders and actions followed and MCPO on the planes
executed them with finesse. I settled the Submarine to the Periscope Depth. The
CO took a deep periscope sweep and soon I took the boat down for my first
independent deep dive.
At deep depth, a glass of
chilled sea water served by the Submarine's Steward LSTD Bheem Prasad went down my throat and the DIVED WATCH KEEPING
CERTIFICATE was granted to me by the venerable Commanding Officer. This
certificate still remains an integral part of my Navy Memorabilia collection
and will be cherished till my last breath. The MCPO shook my hand and saluted
me for a dive well executed.
The time is again ripe. I am into a school again, albeit into a B-School
(MDI, Gurgaon) and without a Uniform. The learning phase is about to be over and the deep dive
beckons. The old adage -The Submarine Listens is playing loud and clear in my
mind. I am ready for the call and will again execute the mission with my best
energies and intent. My Executive Officer Rear Admiral Soonil Bhokare is
now the FOSM, MCPO has peacefully retired , Satyadev is a successful entrepreneur
and Gaikwad is sailing on the high seas with the Merchant Navy.
The call to the Control Room beckons as the clock ticks by and given a
chance I shall dive again with perfection and finesse. The chilled sea water's
salty taste has rekindled the taste buds- I am alive folks........
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