Deal for S Korean minesweepers to be scrapped

India is all set to scrap the long-pending deal for South Korean mine countermeasure vessels (MCMVs), which are highly-specialized smallish warships that detect, track and destroy enemy mines to keep shipping traffic safe, due to allegations of agents having vitiated the entire selection process.

Instead, in recognition of Navy's critical operational requirement for MCMVs, the defence ministry will "nominate" defence PSU Goa Shipyard (GSL) to build eight such specialized vessels with foreign collaboration through a fresh tender soon.

With defence minister Manohar Parrikar on Sunday returning to New Delhi from Goa, where he visited GSL and held talks with top officials, sources said the final decision to scrap the original MCMV tender is "likely in the next few days".

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