What is INS Magar?

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About INS Magar:

It is the oldest Landing Ship Tank (Large) of the Indian Navy.
It is the lead ship of Magar-class amphibious warfare vessels of the Indian Navy.
The ship was indigenously built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd, Kolkata.
It had the unique distinction of being the first indigenous ship of the Indian Navy.
She was launched on 16 November 1984 and commissioned into the Indian Navy on 18 July 1987 by late Admiral R H Tahiliani.
Features:
- It has been named after a species of crocodile.
- The crest design depicts a Brown coloured crocodile with its mouth open swimming over White and Blue ocean waves.
- The aft portion of the crest shows a cut out of the thick and impenetrable armour like skin of the crocodile.
- The design has been taken from a Mathura sculpture of 1st Century AD, preserved in original in the Lucknow museum.
- The ship has a displacement of 5,600 tonnes, a length of 125 metres, a beam of 17 metres.
During its service, Magar has participated in numerous operations, amphibious exercises, and humanitarian missions, noteworthy of them being Operation Samudra Setu wherein over 4,000 Indian nationals were repatriated from various corners of the world during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ship was also instrumental in the evacuation of over 1,300 survivors post the tsunami in 2004 and had been part of several joint military exercises with the Indian Army.

Q1) What is a Landing Ship Tank?

The Landing Ship Tank is an ocean going ship capable of shore to shore delivery of tanks, amphibious assault vehicles, and troops. The LST program was developed in response to a need for armored infantry divisions in invasions by sea

Source: INS Magar rests her oars after 36 years of service