India assesses vulnerability of Scorpene submarines after leak of secret data | Latest News India - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

India assesses vulnerability of Scorpene submarines after leak of secret data

Hindustan Times | ByRahul Singh and Rezaul H Laskar, New Delhi
Aug 24, 2016 11:54 PM IST

India was on Wednesday scrambling to assess the vulnerability of the mainstay of its future submarine fleet after the leak of a massive cache of secret documents detailing the combat capabilities of the French-designed Scorpene submarines.

India was scrambling on Wednesday to assess the vulnerability of the mainstay of its future submarine fleet after the leak of a massive cache of secret documents detailing the combat capabilities of the French-designed Scorpene submarines.

File photo of India’s first Scorpene submarine being floated at the Mazagon Docks in Mumbai.(Pratham Gokhale/HT File Photo)
File photo of India’s first Scorpene submarine being floated at the Mazagon Docks in Mumbai.(Pratham Gokhale/HT File Photo)

The government sought a report from French shipbuilder DCNS, which bagged the Rs 23,562-crore ($3.5 billion) contract for six submarines in 2005, on the leak after The Australian newspaper reported that the documents could prove an “intelligence bonanza” for India’s rivals such as Pakistan and China.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

The leak, running to 22,400 pages, detail key secret stealth capabilities of the submarines, including the frequencies at which they gather intelligence, their diving depths, range and endurance, and specifications of their torpedo launch and combat systems.

Read: Scorpene submarines documents leak case of hacking: Manohar Parrikar

The military establishment insisted that the leak was a “cause of concern” but was not serious enough to compromise the Scorpene submarines. However, an official statement issued by DCNS in Paris acknowledged that the sensitive data made public was a “serious matter”.

“This investigation will determine the exact nature of the leaked documents, the potential damages to DCNS customers as well as the responsibilities for this leakage,” DCNS said.

Defence minister Manohar Parrikar sought a report from the Indian Navy chief Admiral Sunil Lanba on the “extent of the leak”. Parrikar, who said he learnt of the leak at midnight on Tuesday, described it as a “case of hacking”.

“The first step is to identify if it’s related to us, and anyway it’s not all 100% leak,” said Parrikar, who also met the navy chief to assess the situation.

The Indian Navy said the source of the leak was apparently “from overseas and not in India”. A naval spokesman said the “available information is being examined” at the defence ministry and that “an analysis is being carried out by the concerned specialists”.

Read: All about Indian Navy’s crucial Scorpene submarines

The main opposition Congress demanded a “complete security audit” of the defence ministry following the leak. Party spokesman Randeep Surjewala said the audit of should be done by a sitting Supreme Court judge.

India has ordered six Scorpene-class submarines and the first vessel built at Mumbai’s state-run Mazagon Docks began sea trials in May and is expected to be inducted early next year. The Scorpene is expected to become the main conventional submarine of the Indian fleet and replace the ageing Russian Kilo-class and German HDW vessels that are almost three decades old.

The report in The Australian said the DCNS documents, marked “Restricted Scorpene India”, detail highly classified information such as the levels of noise the submarines make at various speeds, where the submarine the crew can speak safely to avoid ¬detection by the enemy, magnetic, electromagnetic and infra-red data, and noise specifications of the propeller and radiated noise levels that occur when the submarine surfaces.

The leak could also trigger alarm in countries that operate a variant of the Scorpene, or have ordered the submarine, including Malaysia, Chile and Brazil, the report said.

Read: Data leak serious matter but Scorpene programme on track: MDL chairman

The Australian posted several redacted pages from what appeared to be an operating manual for the submarine on its website. It reported it had seen 4,457 pages on the Scorpene’s underwater sensors, 4,209 pages on its above-water sensors, 4,301 pages on its combat management system, 493 pages on its torpedo launch system and specifications, 6,841 pages on the communications system and 2,138 on its navigation systems.

The report said DCNS had “implied – but did not say directly – that the leak might have occurred at India’s end, rather than from France”. However, The Australian said it had learnt the data on the Scorpene was written in France for India in 2011 and is suspected of being removed from France in that same year by a former French Navy officer who was at that time a DCNS subcontractor.

The data is then believed to have been taken to a company in southeast Asia, possibly to assist in a commercial venture for a regional navy.

Read: France’s DCNS says Scorpene submarine data leak may be ‘economic warfare’

Peter Roberts of the Royal United Services Institute in London said the most serious implications from the leak were the “frequency signature details” associated with the Scorpene. “The major risk, following this disclosure, is from the exposure of data related to propeller and radiated noise – as a result, Indian submarines will be more vulnerable after the data breach,” he told HT.

“The implications of the data loss for the arms community are important in the short term, but probably procedural in the medium to long term. DCNS will obviously have to make some reassurances to the Indian government, and possibly undertake some mitigation work.”

Unveiling Elections 2024: The Big Picture', a fresh segment in HT's talk show 'The Interview with Kumkum Chadha', where leaders across the political spectrum discuss the upcoming general elections. Watch now!

Get Current Updates on India News, Election 2024, Arvind Kejriwal News Live, Bihar Board 10th Result 2024 Live along with Latest News and Top Headlines from India and around the world.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Friday, March 29, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On