INS Rajput (D51)

INS Rajput (D51) is a guided-missile destroyer and the lead ship of the Rajput class destroyers of the Indian Navy. She was commissioned on September 30, 1980. Commodore (later Vice Admiral) Gulab Mohanlal Hiranandani was her first commanding officer.

INS Rajput served as a trial platform for the BrahMos cruise missile. The 4 P-20M single launchers (port and starboard) were replaced by two boxed launchers, each with 4 cells. A new variant of the Prithvi-III missile was test fired from Rajput on March 2007. She is capable of attacking land targets, as well as fulfilling anti-aircraft and anti-submarine roles as a taskforce or carrier escort. The Rajput tracked the Dhanush Ballistic missile during a successful test in 2005.