On January 15, 2025, a historic event took place at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai as Prime Minister Narendra Modi commissioned three advanced naval ships: The ones that can be named are, INS Surat, INS Nilgiri and, INS Vaghsheer. This event is an important step in the Indian naval Defense plan to increase its independence and improve its position in Indian Ocean Region.
The commissioning of these three frontline naval combatants further underlines India’s commitment for a vision toward building an autonomous defence industry. Referring to the function, Prime Minister Modi said that it links India’s glorious maritime history to its future. INS Nilgiri is named after naval power of Cholas and the INS Surat redefines time when Indian ports linked with West Asian region. The INS Vaghsheer forms part of a growing capability in underwater warfare with the Indian Navy.
This would enhance the Indian maritime forces especially in face of increased naval power from China through the commission of INS Surat, INS Nilgiri and INS Vaghsheer. Thus with 62 more ships and submarines already under construction the Indian Navy is setting up for future sea power. This brings improvement to the Indian navy and also re-emphasizes India’s on going drive for ‘Make in India’ defence manufacturing.
Enhancing the Indian maritime force
The launch of INS Surat, INS Nilgiri, and INS Vaghsheer increases the capabilities of Indian Navy into a new level. These sophisticated naval platforms are going to complement the country’s strategic preparedness and guarantee safe control of the IOR. Here’s how these new additions to the Indian Navy's fleet will enhance India's capabilities at sea:
Enhancing Navy Deterrence and Influence in Battle-space
The INS Surat is a stealth guided missile destroyer that is packed with a serious punch for the Indian Navy and a set of multi-functional sensors. Incorporating BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles and Barak-8 surface-to-air missiles enhances the acquiring nation’s attack and Defense power in a useful way, also demonstrates India’s fitting of the current weaponry technology. Through its high capacity to engage multiple targets at once and employ in different threat scenarios, INS Surat steps up India’s strategic dissuasive capacity as well as the projection of power in its near abroad. Some of the important aspects of its design are designed to lower its radar signature or primary, making it far harder for enemies to lock on to. This helps in maintaining surprise elements and executes surprise operations, adding strength to Indian Navy’s strategic edge.
Improving Anti Submarines and Anti-Aircraft Operations
INS Nilgiri the first of the Project 17A stealth frigates has 3rd generation highly advanced anti-submarine warfare capabilities. The Armament of many varieties of sonar systems, torpedoes as well as anti-submarine rockets makes it a combat worthy platform for taking on underwater threats. This capability is important especially in the Indian Ocean Region given the growing sub-surface operations. Besides, the INS Nilgiri equipped with modern air defence systems and MF-STAR that help to recce and warn against aerial threats. This capacity to use different helicopters makes it convenient in ASW and search-and-rescue operations and a vital part of maritime security for India.
Enhancing the Presence Under-sea
The last boat of the Project 75 Kalvari class submarines, the INS Vaghsheer brings a lot of improvement in India’s underwater readiness for reconnaissance and strike operations. It also has an Air Independent Propulsion (AIP), which enables the craft to stay underwater for much longer time thus increasing on the duration it can spend in executing its mission. INS Vaghsheer has top of the art acoustic stealth capability and possesses torpedoes and anti-ship missiles as part of its arsenal to undertake various functions including, reconnaissance and accurate attacks. The characteristics of the submarine, as well as the modularity of the concept, allow for the future installation of new advanced technologies for solving problems in new conditions of naval operations. This is because INS Vaghsheer offers the Indian Navy the crucial edge it needs in order to ensure a secured sub-surface environment.
Increasing Indigenous Defence Industrial Capability and Self-Sufficiency
The commission of all three can be seen as Indian navy’s working towards being fully equipped indigenously and to rely on its domestic defence industry. These vessels were specially developed and constructed using the capabilities of Indian ship building and manufactures & machinery industry. Another consideration is that this focus on indigenous production ensures India’s defence manufacturing capacity, as well as minimising supply chain reliance on the international market. Thus, the development of home-grown technologies will enable India to create and commission advanced systems, which will meet the current naval security threats and demands. This approach compliments the governments ‘Make in India’ policy aimed at boosting the country’s economy and especially the Defense industry.
Promoting Peace and Security
The upgraded operation has endurance of the favourable for stability and cooperation within the region which is of essence. As a responsible maritime power, India is obliged towards protection of sea lines of communication and principle of freedom of navigation. These advanced naval assets have a positive role in boosting India’s capability to multilateral exercises, operations. There is recognition to adapt robust relations with another navy can work together combating core sea security threats like piracy, smuggling, and sea terrorism. The new facilities and opportunities of the Indian Navy thus allow the country to present itself as a reliable partner in the preservation of peace and stability in IOR.
INS Surat: marvel of Indian Naval Engineering
Self –Reliance in Defense Manufacturing With the commissioning of the INS Surat, the Indian Navy has added a remarkable and extremely powerful system in its fleet. Being the fourth ship of the Project 15B Visakhapatnam-class destroyers, the INS Surat uses the latest features, carries a powerful armament and is built with the Indian shipbuilding industry’s most modern technologies and skills.
Design and Construction
The INS Surat is an example of how India is taking up the shipbuilding industry. Constructed at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited MDL Mumbai, has displacement of 8000 tonnes, and length of 163 meters. Its sleek design incorporates advanced stealth features, reducing its radar cross-section and enhancing its survivability in hostile environments. The actual construction of the encapsulating vessel was designed as a modular form with high accuracy and relatively low construction time.
Advanced Weapon Systems
INS Surat is equipped with modern weapons which increase its attack as well as its protection. The ship has the supersonic cruise BrahMos missile, which is one of the most accurate and fastest missile systems. Furthermore, the Barak-8 surface-to-air system gives adequate air control with accurate capabilities to counter the aerial threats. The destroyer also possesses torpedoes, anti-submarine rockets and a roller manned Close-In Weapon System for point blank engagements. Organizing of these sophisticated weapon systems makes certain that the INS Surat can accommodate different threats in different domains, the aerial, surface and the sub-surface domains in this case.
Modern Sensors
In addition to its weaponry, INS Surat also has modern day range sensor systems and network centric warfare. Responsible for situational awareness and early warning against such threats the ship is equipped with the multi-function surveillance and threat alert radar (MF-STAR). Electronic warfare suites provide additional support to the destroyer in terms of identifying, interrupting and suppressing the adversary’s communication and Radar frequencies.
Strategic Importance
The commissioning of INS Surat enhances the Indian maritime defence and increase the force-level measure in the IOR. By virtue of these enhanced features the Indian navy is capable of performing various tasks including but not limited to maritime surveillance and counter piracy operations, humanitarian missions and disaster management. These features and versatility of destroyer makes it very effective tool for protecting the Indo-maritime interests and stability of the region.
INS Nilgiri: A Beacon of India’s Naval Progress
Commissioned into the Indian Navy on January 15, 2025, INS Nilgiri represents rising India’s Defense capacity in maritime domain. INS Nilgiri is part of the Project 17A stealth frigate class and is a leading vessel interoperating with technologies, weapons systems and indigenous Indian building capability; a major upward shift for Indian naval engineering.
Design and Construction
The INS Nilgiri is the second of the seven planned Kalvari-class submarines that were built by the Indian Navy’s Warship Design Bureau for its Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited in Mumbai. The ship has the overall length of 149 meters and estimated displacement of about 6,670 tonnes. The ship is fitted with the latest stealth technology characteristics that include low-observability across the radar frequency bands, better probability of survival, and better sea handling capabilities. Due to the principles of the use of modular constructiveness became possible to reach the higher levels of accuracy and speed in SHS production.
Advanced Stealth and Weaponry
INS Nilgiri with its high stealth features presents a challenging force multiplier in different naval operations. The weapon system is fully modern with regard to surface and aerial targets, made up of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile and Barak-8 surface-to-air missiles, respectively. These weapons afford INS Nilgiri a Signal strike capacity as well as solid protective systems. Besides missile system, INS Nilgiri includes modern torpedoes and anti-submarine rockets that make it a super weapon in ASW operations. Armed decks guarantee the possibility of engaging and suppressing threats at sea and in the air as well as underwater.
Flexibility and Strategic Importance
Due to the wide variety of tasks that can be carried out by the INS Nilgiri is a great addition to the Indian Navy. It expands the types of helicopters it operates means the increased ASW and search-and-rescue capacity due to the new MH-60R helicopters. This was made possible by the technological features that have equipped this ship in terms of firepower to perform lots of operations including just not limited to maritime patrol, anti-pirate operations, as well as humanitarian assistant and disaster relief operations.
INS Vaghsheer: Strengthening India’s Submarine Force
The Vaghsheer is formally inducted into the Indian Navy on January 15, 2025; it substantially boosts indigenous undersea power. INS Vaghsheer is the sixth and last of the Project 75 Kalvari class submarines reflecting hi-tech, stealth and wholly built in India to bolster India’s maritime security.
Design and Construction
The INS Vaghsheer was built at MDL (Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited) with the cooperation of Naval Group of France. This one of the Scorpene-class submarine is 67.5 meters long and has a submerged displacement of 1,775 tons. It has enhanced stealth functions features a hydrodynamic shape, low sound emissions and further improved silencing equipment thus is almost silent and hard to spot.
Advanced Stealth and Weaponry
At the same time, INS Vaghsheer has significant advantages in favour of its stealth, and even more so in the field of weapons systems. The submarine is armed with modern torpedoes and ship killers and this makes it possible for the submarine to attack and deal with a number of surface and sub-surface vessels. These superior weapons help to guarantee that INS Vaghsheer can fulfil various tasks such as intelligence gathering and surveillance, offence operation, and ASW. Some of the main stated characteristics in INS Vaghsheer include an air independent propulsion system. This technology enables the submarine to stay under water for longer time and increases its operational capability without being detected.
Advanced Underwater Capabilities
INS Vaghsheer greatly enhances the capabilities of the Indian Navy as a multi formidable arm of the sea surface. Its capabilities obtained by the application of advanced types of sonar, both the active sonar array and the passive sonar array, depict a capability of achieving adequate situation awareness and threat identification. In combination with the features, which make this ship so valuable, it is worth highlighting the possibility of using submarines as a platform for deploying Special Forces for operations. INS Vaghsheer’s versatile role to operate in various sea zones gives the vessel strategic importance to ensure Indian’s maritime security and safeguard its interest in the IOR.
Strategic Importance
INS Vaghsheer commissioning is a testament of India’s ability to produce Defense equipment domestically and sustainably build water forces. Submarine significantly improves the multi-faceted operational capability of the Indian Navy particularly in ASW apart from Surveillance, Coastal Patrol, Defensive as well as Offensive operations. The enemy tracking and stealth facilities, phenomenal weaponry, and a long successful operating ability make INS Vaghsheer as a wonderful addition to the Indian sub-marine. Not only does its induction increase India’s strategic depth of naval security but it also strengthening India’s status as a premier naval force in the world.