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India's navy chief Admiral D.K. Joshi on Wednesday resigned after a spate of submarine disasters within 10 months, said local media.
Two officers were feared killed and seven sailors injured when a fire erupted on board a submarine, INS Sindhuratna, near Mumbai earlier Wednesday, the third high profile accident involving submarines of Indian navy in 10 months.
"Taking moral responsibility for the accidents and incidents which have taken place during the past few months, the navy chief has resigned. The government has accepted the resignation of Admiral Joshi with immediate effect," said the Indian Defense Ministry.
Indian navy vice-chief Vice Admiral RK Dhowan will be discharging the duties of officiating navy chief, pending the appointment of a regular chief," said a defense ministry statement.
In the mishap, the navy said the two officers, a lieutenant Commander and a lieutenant, both from the electrical branch, were "still to be accounted for," while the seven sailors were airlifted by Sea King helicopters to INS Ashwini hospital at Colaba in southern Mumbai, said local daily Times of India online.
Last August, another submarine, INS Sindhurakshak, a Russian kilo-class submarine like INS Sindhuratna, exploded and sank at the Mumbai naval dockyard, killing three officers and 15 sailors.
Four months earlier, another submarine caught fire off Mumbai, without causing any casualties.
The local media said the spate of accidents involving Indian submarines has given a dim picture of the Indian navy, as it is seeking a greater role in overseas operations in the Indian ocean and beyond.
