A week after Navy Chief Admiral Lanba said the ex-flagship of the Indian Navy, Viraat, will be sold for scrap within four months, NDTV has learned that the Maharashtra government has a Plan B. Sources say the state is interested in acquiring the aircraft carrier and sinking her to form an "underwater memorial" off the Sindhudurg coast, 500 kms south of Mumbai. "The proposed memorial will become an artificial reef and is expected to be a world-class scuba diving site. This will help to boost tourism not only in Sindhudurg but also in Ratnagiri," says a proposal from the state's tourism department, accessed by NDTV.
