India's Russian-made naval submarine exploded while moored in Mumbai. INS Sindhurakshak was armed with torpedoes and missiles when it exploded, sending fireballs in the sky early Wednesday. The Financial Times reported that up to eighteen sailors trapped inside the sub were killed. Officials were still figuring out the cause of the blast as of press time.
The incident happened just three days after India announced the successful activation of the atomic reactor of its first indigenous submarine, the INS Arihant. The activation was the first step to check if the submarine would be able to fire nuclear-tipped missiles from air, land and sea before it can be deployed.
India bought the INS Sindhurakshak from Russia. The country also paid at least USD 80 million to Russia months before to refit the sub with cruise missiles.
Citing data from the Stockholm International Peace Research, The Financial Times revealed that since 2010, India was the world's biggest importer of weapons. In 2011, the country's military expenditure was USD 44.28 billion, not counting what it spent for in nuclear weapons. Most of the arms they imported were from Russia.
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