The Navy’s dedicated base for its Special Operation Forces – MARCOS – INS Karna was commissioned by the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba.
The Marine Commando Force (MCF), also called as the ‘MARCOS’, was raised in February 1987 (at INS Abhimanyu in Mumbai) as the Indian Marine Special Force (IMSF), capable of operating in all three dimensions, at sea, in air and on land.
The establishment of the first base for Indian Navy’s elite force with capability to operate in all three dimensions of warfare – air, land and sea – in the home port of the Navy on the Eastern Seaboard marks another milestone in Indian Navy bonding with the city of Visakhapatnam.
The MARCOS East unit has progressed in terms of manpower, infrastructure, equipment holding and other resources. The complement of the unit has risen from an initial strength of two officers and 40 sailors to 25 officers and 300 sailors.
The MARCOS Base has been named after the supreme archer and warrior from Indian Epic Mahabharata – Karna.