New Delhi, Aug 13

INS Tabar entered Portsmouth harbour on 13 Aug 21 as part of her good will visit. She was received by Commodore JJ Bailey, Portsmouth Naval Base Commander, the Indian NA, the Royal Navy NA in Delhi and other officials of the Royal Navy.

After arrival in harbour, Captain Mahesh Mangipudi, Commanding Officer (CO), accompanied by Indian NA and ten personnel of the ship paid homage at the historic Southsea Naval Memorial. Later, the CO paid courtesy call on Councillor Frank Jonas, Lord Mayor of Portsmouth at the Portsmouth Guildhall. This was followed by a courtesy call on Commodore JJ Bailey, the Portsmouth Naval Base Commander, at his office. Both officials welcomed the ship’s visit to Portsmouth and conveyed warm greetings to the ship and her crew. On completion of the interactions, the CO presented both dignitaries with the ship’s crest.

Earlier, the ship commenced Exercise Konkan 2021 on 12 Aug 21 with a maritime interception exercise with HMS Westminster off Portsmouth. Exercise Konkan 2021 will be continued between Tabar and Westminster on 16 Aug 21 after the departure of Tabar from Portsmouth. On entering harbour, the Final Planning Conference for Exercise Konkan 2021 was held in non-contact form between the Ops Teams of Tabar and Westminster.

As part of the harbour engagements of Exercise Konkan 2021, a number of professional interactions were held between the two sides on 13 Aug 21. These included Subject Matter Expert (SME) exchanges on electric propulsion, unmanned surface vessels and electronic navigation. A visit to the Joint Maritime Security Centre at Potsdown Hill was also held for a team from Tabar.