Big boost for maritime strength: Navy gets delivery of 2 warships, 1 survey vessel in one day
On March 30, 2026, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata, simultaneously handed over three indigenously built vessels to the Indian Navy — the guided-missile frigate Dunagiri, the survey vessel Sanshodhak, and the anti-submarine warfare shallow watercraft (ASW-SWC) Agray
This single-day triple delivery is unprecedented in Indian naval history and reflects the accelerating production tempo at Indian public sector shipyards
Dunagiri is the fifth vessel delivered under Project 17A (Nilgiri-class stealth frigates) — a programme building seven advanced guided-missile frigates across GRSE and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL)
Sanshodhak is the fourth and final vessel of the Sandhayak-class hydrographic survey vessels, completing that class built entirely by GRSE
Agray is an anti-submarine warfare shallow watercraft designed for littoral submarine detection and coastal security operations
The deliveries are part of the Indian Navy's plan to commission a record 19 warships in 2026 — the largest annual fleet accretion in its history
Project 17A — Nilgiri-Class Stealth Frigates and Indigenisation
Project 17A (P-17A) is a programme to build seven multi-mission stealth guided-missile frigates for the Indian Navy, approved by the Defence Acquisition Council at a cost of approximately Rs 45,000 crore. The frigates are an enhanced variant of the earlier Shivalik-class (Project 17) and are being constructed at two domestic shipyards: MDL (Mumbai) building four ships, and GRSE (Kolkata) building three — Himgiri, Dunagiri, and Vindhyagiri. The ships incorporate stealth features, advanced weapons, and a high degree of indigenous content.
Key Details
- Dimensions: 149 metres long, 6,670-tonne displacement, accommodates 226 personnel
- Weapons suite: 76mm main gun, two 30mm AK-630M CIWS, BrahMos supersonic cruise missile launchers (8 missiles), 32 Barak-8 surface-to-air missiles, torpedo tubes
- Sensor suite: MF-STAR multi-function radar (IAI, Israel), integrated combat management system enabling multi-domain operations (air, surface, sub-surface)
- Stealth features: Reduced radar cross-section hull design, integrated mast, noise-dampened machinery
- Indigenous content target: Over 75% (one of the highest for a major combatant class in India)
The delivery of Dunagiri as the fifth P-17A ship signals that the programme — once criticised for delays — is now on track; with seven frigates spread across two shipyards, P-17A is the single largest ongoing surface combatant programme and a centrepiece of India's naval modernisation.
Hydrographic Survey Vessels and Maritime Domain Awareness
Hydrographic survey vessels serve a critical but often overlooked defence and civilian function: they map the ocean floor, measure water depths, identify navigational hazards, chart tidal patterns, and collect oceanographic data essential for submarine operations, naval navigation, and port development. The Sandhayak-class (formally known as Survey Vessel Large or SVL) is a series of four vessels built by GRSE to replace the ageing earlier Sandhayak-class ships. Beyond their primary hydrographic role, these ships serve secondary roles including search and rescue, ocean research, and functioning as hospital ships.
Key Details
- Sandhayak-class (2023 series) specifications: 3,300-tonne displacement, 110-metre length, maximum speed 18 knots, range 6,500 nautical miles at 14-16 knots, crew of 231
- Primary role: Coastal and deep-water hydrographic surveys of ports, navigational channels, and the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ); collection of oceanographic data for defence use
- Each vessel carries four Survey Motor Boats (SMBs) for shallow-water operations and has a hangar for one advanced light helicopter
- India's EEZ extends 200 nautical miles from its baseline, covering approximately 2.37 million sq km — systematic hydrographic survey is essential for EEZ management and naval operations
- Hydrographic data is also shared internationally under the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) framework
Sanshodhak completes the Sandhayak-class programme, giving the Indian Navy a modern, indigenously built hydrographic fleet capable of surveying India's vast EEZ and providing the subsurface data that supports submarine operations, missile targeting, and offshore security.
India's Defence Indigenisation Drive — Atmanirbhar Bharat in Defence
India's defence indigenisation policy — branded under the Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India) framework — aims to reduce dependence on imported military equipment and develop a robust domestic defence industrial base. Key policy instruments include the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP 2020), which mandates indigenisation categories; the Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs); and GRSE and MDL as the two primary naval shipyards. The policy establishes a Positive Indigenisation List (PIL) — items that can only be sourced domestically — and targets the defence export ceiling at Rs 50,000 crore by 2029.
Key Details
- Defence Acquisition categories: IDDM (Indigenously Designed, Developed, Manufactured — highest preference), Make-I, Make-II, Buy (Indian), Buy (Indian-IDDM)
- GRSE (Kolkata): Public sector shipyard under Ministry of Defence; specialises in smaller combatants, frigates, survey vessels, and landing craft
- MDL (Mumbai): Builds destroyers (Visakhapatnam-class, P-15B), submarines (Scorpene/Kalvari-class), and the larger P-17A frigates
- India's defence exports rose from under Rs 1,000 crore (2014) to over Rs 21,000 crore (2024) — navalmaritime platforms increasingly feature in export portfolio
- Navy's commissioning rate: One vessel every six weeks from 2026 onwards, enabled by modular shipbuilding in 250-tonne block sections
The simultaneous triple delivery from a single public-sector shipyard — a frigate, a survey vessel, and an ASW craft — demonstrates the production acceleration that indigenisation policy has enabled; the Navy's target of 19 commissionings in 2026 would be impossible without the mature capacity now resident in GRSE and MDL.
- March 30, 2026: GRSE simultaneously delivered INS Dunagiri, INS Sanshodhak, and ASW-SWC Agray to the Indian Navy
- Dunagiri: 5th of 7 Project 17A (Nilgiri-class) stealth frigates; 149 m, 6,670 tonnes; BrahMos + Barak-8 armed
- Project 17A cost: ~Rs 45,000 crore; 4 ships at MDL, 3 at GRSE; >75% indigenous content
- Sanshodhak: 4th and final Sandhayak-class survey vessel (SVL); 3,300 tonnes, 110 m, range 6,500 nm
- Agray: Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Watercraft (ASW-SWC) for littoral submarine detection
- Indian Navy target: 19 warships commissioned in 2026 — largest annual fleet accretion in its history
- Commissioning tempo from 2026: One vessel every six weeks
- GRSE: Public sector shipyard, Kolkata, under Ministry of Defence
- India's EEZ: ~2.37 million sq km — hydrographic survey coverage critical for naval and economic security
- Defence exports: Grew from
Rs 21,000 crore (2024)