Former aircraft carrier Viraat to become a floating museum: Devendra Fadnavis

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra state cabinet on Thursday cleared the decks for the Navy’s longest-serving aircraft carrier, INS Viraat, now retired, to be converted into India’s first-ever moored maritime museum-cum-marine adventure centre.

As per the Maharashtra government’s Rs 852-crore plan for Viraat, the ship’s conversion will be on publicprivate-partnership (PPP) basis. It will be grouted (grounded, sealed to the seabed with concrete and moored) seven nautical miles off the Malvan coast at Nivati rocks in Sindhudurg. Officials said that the world over, only seven aircraft carriers have been converted into museums, theme parks and luxury hotels.

The ship is the world’s oldest aircraft carrier, according to the Indian Navy, which bought it in 1986 and recommissioned it a year later. At present, Viraat is at Mumbai’s Naval dockyard after its decommissioning in 2017.


An official said Viraat will host biodiversity centres and a marine adventure centre providing sailing and scuba-diving experiences. There will be virtual galleries, cafeterias and even a training centre for merchant navy crew.

“We will now reach out to the defence ministry to show our interest in the ship. The ministry will have a reserve price for Viraat, which we will pay to procure it. Once that is done, tenders to appoint a private partner will be floated,” said a state official.

He said the private partner may add a few more attractions to the state government’s plan. “We have already received suggestions for a convention centre, luxury accommodation and a helipad. These may be included, provided they keep the dignity of the Centaur-class aircraft carrier intact,” the official said.

The Konkan site has been shortlisted for its tourism potential; also, mooring charges for the ship at a civilian location around Mumbai would be unaffordable. Officials said the state may have to pitch in with at least Rs 250 crore as viability gap funding. They said this is a rough estimate as there has never been such a project in India before.

Commodore (Retd) Medioma Bhada said, “It is a very good idea. But the best such opportunity would have been with INS Vikrant, which had more sentimental value for the Indian Navy than Viraat.”