Mumbai - Aircraft Carrier INS Viraat was decommissioned on 6 March 2017. INS Viraat served the Indian Navy for 30 years. The Centaur class aircraft carrier has spent a total of 57 years on the high seas. She was first inducted into the British Royal Navy on 18 November 1959 as HMS Hernes.
In 1980, the Indian navy acquired Viraat at a cost of six crore dollars and inducted her on 12 May 1987. The navy now plans to wait for four months for a suitable buyer for the carrier, failing which she will be sent in for dismantling.
Shiv Sena leader Yashwant Jadhav has demanded BMC convert INS Viraat into the maritime museum. Jadhav has appealed every coastal state to support him in the initiative.
Jadhav doesn't want INS Viraat to meet the same fate likewise INS Vikrant. The aircraft must not be sold as scrap material. Shiv Sena MP Rahul Shewale also supported the initiative led by Yashwant Jadhav.