The Russian submarine tragedy

The investigation into the sinking of the Kursk should reveal the causes which led to the catastrophe. If, as it is believed, it was brought about by its collision with an underwater object, presumably another submarine, it is very unfortunate that the Kursk could not detect the latter's presence well in time.

If this is what had happened, it should by now have come to light with the news of the other submarine having been either damaged or sunk along with the Kursk.

The enquiry into the disaster will have to explore what other "underwater objects" could have been hit by the ill-fated Kursk.

The other horrifying possibilities which have been mentioned in this connection are the explosion of the two tons of TNT stored inside the submarine and the torpedoes it was carrying. They raise a few disturbing questions about whether during peacetime submarines should be packed with cargo of the kind which could be put to use only when nations are at war.

If it is regarded necessary even during peace time to test the torpedo firing capabilities of submarines, was it not possible for them to have dummy versions of the same instead of the live ones fraught with danger of the kind to which the Kursk was exposed?

The message from the latest Kursk tragedy is that nuclear submarine technology is still far from being fully grasped.

-- The Hindu, New Delhi