Boost To Naval Power: Indian Navy Inducts Two Nilgiri-Class Frigates — Key Facts To Know

In a first, the Indian Navy has inducted two new major warships — Nilgiri-class stealth frigates INS Himgiri and INS Udaygiri. They were commissioned simultaneously at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, in a ceremony presided over by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday.

Himgiri was built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers in Kolkata while Mumbai's Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders has built Udaygiri. Both warships come under Project 17 Alpha (P-17A).

Both the newly commissioned vessels were built with 75% indigenous material and therefore a push in government's self reliance or 'aatmanirbharta' stance surrounding defence manufacturing and capabilities.

NDTV reported that the dual commissioning shows India's augmenting shipbuilding valour and cooperation between major defence shipbuilders.

With this, India now also has a three-frigate squadron demonstrating the country's industrial-technological capability and regional power balance by indigenous capability.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh congratulated both the shipbuilders via a post on X

An official statement said Udaygiri and Himgiri contain big improvements in design, stealth, weapon and sensor systems, and are capable of executing a full spectrum of maritime missions.

Owing to the modular construction methodology adopted by Indian shipyards, Udaygiri holds the significance of being the fastest ship in this class to be delivered post-launch. The two frigates will soon join the Eastern Fleet.

Navy's Warship Design Bureau has designed both the vessels, and Udaygiri marks the bureau's 100th ship design.

This class of  P-17A frigates are approximately 5% larger than Shivalik-class frigates while at the same time being sleeker in form and having a lower radar cross-section.

Both warships will play a key role in maritime security for the nation, according to officials and help deter a major security threat posed by China's expanding maritime expansion, which has established its hold in Gwadar (Pakistan), Hambantota (Sri Lanka), Chittagong (Bangladesh), and Djibouti under the 'string of pearls' policy.

• Manufacturer: Mumbai-based Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders

• Length: 149 meters

• Speed: 28 knots or about 52 km per hour

• Weapons: 48 Barak-8 missiles and eight BrahMos supersonic missiles

• Can operate two helicopters

• Manufacturer: Kolkata-based Garden Reach Shipbuilders

• Length: 149 meters

• Speed: 28 knots or about 52 km per hour

• Weapons: 32 Barak-8 missiles and eight BrahMos supersonic missiles

• Can operate two helicopters

• Additional Feature: Mareech torpedo decoy system

Other weapons included in the frigates are — supersonic surface-to-surface missiles, medium-range surface-to-air missiles, a 76 mm MR Gun, and a combination of 30 mm and 12.7 mm close-in weapon systems, as well as anti-submarine/underwater weapon systems.