INS Viraat, considered as one of the oldest serving warships in India Navy is also India's second aircraft carrier in the fleet . There are proposals to make it a museum after it being decommissioned next year. The latest news is that Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandababu Naidu has made a great offer for keeping the "floating museum".
Babu has reportedly proposed Kakinada Port
Babu has reportedly proposed Kakinada Port, which is located just 170 km south from the Submarine Museum of Vishakhapatnam. Indian Navy meanwhile is hoping that INS Viraat will be proving to be luckier than its predecessor ship INS Vikrant, which was India's first aircraft carrier and had to be scrapped.
Sources say that the ship will be given to that state which has the best plans to utilise it, even as the Union Defence Ministry is reportedly writing to all the coastal states, where they could get an option to preserve this aircraft carrier as a museum. This also includes guarantee from the state government over the upkeep while defence ministry will guide the state over how to preserve it.
Sources say that AP may get this since Submarine Museum in Visakhapatnam had been running successful since 2002. The INS Kurusura was a Soviet made submarine that was then hauled up from the sea with intact and placed neatly on concrete foundation after its decommissioning in 2001. The museum was inaugurated by Naidu and looking at his personal interest in the project, AP may get INS Viraat.
