In a show of shipbuilding force, the Indian Navy commissioned three separate vessels at once on Jan. 15, in a ceremony at the state-owned Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders in Mumbai. The service inducted a submarine, a destroyer and a frigate. The event marked the first time three major naval combatant vessels had been commissioned together in the country’s history. The ceremony was overseen by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who gave a speech to celebrate the milestone for India’s developing navy, lauding the incoming platforms and the effort behind them. The speech and the commissioning both offer key insights into India’s maritime defense goals and its emerging naval rivalry with China in the Indian Ocean. The lack of naval parity between the world’s two most populous nations has made maritime security and fleet growth major pillars of Prime Minister Modi’s defense policy.
The Vessels
The submarine, Vagsheer, is the last of six Kalvari-class, or Project 75, submarines derived from the French Scorpene class. While Vagsheer is the last of the first batch of these boats, India has planned to acquire three further Scorpene-class submarines in the near future. The subs are planned to be fitted with other indigenously designed advanced features including Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) systems as well as the Electronic Heavy Weight Torpedo (EHWT) Takshak in the near future. Once installed, the AIP system will allow the Kalvari class to operate far longer without surfacing to recharge its batteries, greatly enhancing its stealth characteristics by reducing detectability.
The destroyer, Surat, is the last of four Visakhapatnam-class stealth guided-missile destroyers built for the Indian Navy. These ships are equipped with India’s homemade BrahMos anti-ship missiles and Varunastra torpedoes along with joint Israeli-Indian Barak-8 surface-to-air-missiles, making them some of the most capable combatants in the fleet.
The final vessel, the frigate Nilgiri, is the lead ship of a new class of Indian frigates, rapidly being put into service. While Nilgiri is the first commissioned, six more are planned to be inducted by 2027. BrahMos and Barak-8 missiles are fitted aboard these vessels, along with a Super Rapid Gun Mount (SRGM), license-built by Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL), the first of its kind on an Indian ship, offering high-precision anti-air defense. The class, planned to be the longest-range frigates in the Indian Navy, is expected to play a major role in Delhi’s ambitions to become a formidable maritime player in the Indian Ocean, with reach beyond India’s territorial waters.
The Impact
The triple commissioning represents more than just a naval first for India, but a sign of things to come. The ceremony took place under a long shadow cast by Beijing, a regional rival that has become the world’s largest naval power in recent years, spreading its influence into Delhi’s backyard through port calls and even a military base on the Indian Ocean.
As India sizes up an increasingly capable China, volume and speed of shipbuilding have become a priority to close the gap. According to India’s previous Chief of Naval Staff, the country is seeking to field 170 to 175 ships by 2035 with 67 already under construction as of December 2023. The goal requires a fast pace of production with little margin for error. The triple induction shows dedication towards that goal, as the service commissioned more frontline combatant vessels in a day than in all of 2024, in which only one submarine and one frigate were commissioned.
Among its new builds, India’s Navy has placed an emphasis on oceangoing, blue water vessels over Delhi’s traditional green water fleet designed to protect the country’s coastal areas and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The shift shows greater concern with protecting vital economic and strategic waterways such as the Strait of Malacca and the Red Sea, rather than simply defending the homeland. India’s integration of these new platforms speaks to the changing mission of the Navy, with all three capable of traversing the full range of the Indian Ocean without refueling.
The commissioning also reflects another step towards Modi’s signature policy, Atmanirbhar Bharat, or Self-Reliant India. The Prime Minister’s speech touted that each of the vessels was built in India with upwards of 70 percent indigenized components and design. Indian-designed features and weaponry are becoming commonplace on the country’s warships and submarines. The Surat and Nilgiri also hold the distinction of being the first Indian Navy ships designed with separate women’s accommodations and mess halls, showcasing the modernizing character of the service.
As a longstanding buyer of foreign, particularly French and Russian, military hardware, Modi’s push to manufacture in India has been transformative to the country’s defense approach. While still engaged with foreign partners to acquire knowledge and assistance, their decreasing reliance on these partners is seen as a success for the Prime Minister’s policy, one that he is eager to put on display in public venues such as the January ceremony.
Tom Freebairn is a weapons analyst with Military Periscope covering naval affairs and maritime systems. He pursued an undergraduate degree in International Relations and Modern History, followed by a master's in Middle East, Caucasus, and Central Asia Security Studies from the University of St. Andrews. His master's thesis focused on the relationship between oil and separatist politics in Northern Iraq. Tom's interests include the politics of energy, ethnic separatism, the evolution of naval warfare, and classical history.
