The problem with the boilers arose because India had asked the Russians to replace their regular asbestos heat shield on the ship’s boilers because of the risk of poisoning to the crew. Sevmash had created a construction bureau for boiler installation that chose special fire bricks to replace the asbestos. After the failure, the inspectors discovered that the fire bricks had broken down under the high temperatures around the boilers. The question of damage to the boilers themselves from overheating would not be clear until the ship was towed back to Severodvinsk for inspection (Kommersant, September 17).
Is the vessel diesel powered?