Indian Navy inducts warships INS Surat, INS Nilgiri and submarine INS Vagsheer in its fleet   

A significant step to strengthen our naval capabilities keeping Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj as our ideal : PM Narendra Modi  

Mumbai, 15th January – “Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj had given new strength and a new vision to the Indian Navy. Today, in his holy land, we are taking a very big step towards strengthening the Navy of the 21st century”, stated PM Modi. To make India’s army stronger and more modern is one of the priorities of this country. Let it be water, land or air, depth of the oceans or unlimited space, India is protecting her interests everywhere and  constantly bringing in improvements, stated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the occasion of commissioning of warships INS Surat, INS Nilgiri and submarine INS Vagsheer on 15.01.2025 at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai.

The function was attended by the Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Maharashtra Governor C P Radhakrishnan, State Chief Minister Devendra Fadanvis, deputy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar. It is a golden day in the history of the Indian Navy that three naval combatants viz. two warships and a submarine have been inducted in its fleet.

First time a submarine added to the naval fleet

PM Modi stated

  • India is known as a reliable and responsible partner in the world. India operates in the spirit of development, not expansionism.
  • The third term of our Government has started with many big decisions. We have made new policies at a fast pace keeping in view the needs of our country. We have started new work. We are moving ahead with the aim of developing every nook and corner and region of this country. We have protected territorial water, ensured freedom of navigation, and secured trade routes.
  • We are effectively trying to become a global partner in safeguarding the seas from the threats of drug trafficking, arms smuggling and terrorism.
  • India is going to play a major role in giving direction to the global security, economy and geopolitical dynamics.

Special features of –

INS Surat

INS Surat

This warship is named after a city in Gujarat. INS Surat is a stealth-guided missile destroyer known for its speed and cutting-edge technology. This 164-metre-long, 18-metre-wide ship weighs 7600 tons. It has BrahMos and Barak missiles, anti-submarine launchers and special guns made in India.

INS Nilgiri

INS Nilgiri

This warship holds weapons and missiles to fight enemy; mainly including 8 BrahMos and 32 Barak missiles ready to attack targets in air. There is also an anti-submarine rocket launcher on this ship for attacking in water. The speed of this warship is 28 nautical miles. It weighs 6670 tons with 149 metres length. This is equipped with advanced sensors and weapon packages developed to avoid coming in the range of enemy’s radar.

INS Vagsheer submarine

INS Vagsheer submarine

INS Vaghsheer is the sixth and final submarine of the P75 Scorpene Project. It was launched in April 2022 from the Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) in Mumbai. It completed its sea-trials before its official commissioning. Its length is 67.5 metres, height is 12.3 metres. It can go deep sea and fight the enemy.  It can travel by sea for 45-50 days.

MDL has built all the three war combaters following India’s policy of ‘Atmanirbhar (self-reliant) Bharat’, thus, a step towards accomplishing this goal.