The INS Mahe will undertake coastal patrols and be used to secure the country’s territorial waters
The Indian Navy has commissioned the INS Mahe, an anti-submarine shallow water ship that will primarily be used for coastal patrols.
The ship is fitted with advanced weapons, sensors, and communication systems to help it “detect, track, and neutralize sub-surface threats with precision,” the Indian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday. It can also sustain “prolonged operations in shallow waters” and has “technologically advanced machinery and control systems,” the ministry added.
Four out of every five of the ship’s components were made in India; it was designed and built at the Cochin Shipyard.
The new vessel “underscores the Indian Navy’s sustained efforts to promote indigenization through homegrown solutions and innovative technologies,” the ministry said.
New Delhi, which relies heavily on Russian-made equipment, has been pushing to onshore its defense sector under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative.
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Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Upendra Dwivedi commissioned warship INS Mahe, which he said, "embodies innovation and service, significantly augmenting the Navy's capability to ensure near-seas… pic.twitter.com/sO802Ri2UL
”It's a moment of immense pride to be present at the commissioning of the first of eight anti-submarine warfare shallow water crafts built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd for the Indian Navy,” Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi said at the launch ceremony in Mumbai on Monday. “This marks our nation's increasing capability to design, construct and field complex combatants with indigenous technology.”
The defense ministry added that the INS Mahe is “specially designed to undertake anti-submarine operations in coastal and shallow waters.”
India has set a target of expanding its naval fleet to over 200 warships and submarines by 2035, with the possibility of reaching 230 by 2037.
New Delhi has encouraged defense firms from friendly countries to partner with Indian arms manufacturers to bolster the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
New Delhi and Moscow have partnered in the defense sector since the early 1960s.
In July, Russia handed over the Tamal, the eighth Krivak-class frigate built for New Delhi. It was constructed at the Yantar shipyard in Kaliningrad but 26% of its components are from India.
Construction was overseen by specialists from India, according to New Delhi’s Defense Ministry.
