India is looking to bolster its naval fleet amid tensions in the South China Sea, said Indian Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi. "Indian Navy is hoping to sign the deals for procurement of 26 naval variants of Rafale jets and three additional Scorpene submarines by next month," Tripathi said during a press conference in New Delhi on Monday, ahead of Navy Day.
In July last year, the Defence Ministry approved the purchase of the Rafale-M jets from France, primarily for deployment on board the indigenously built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant.
Navy Day is observed on Dec. 4 every year to commemorate India's victory over Pakistan in the 1971 war.
Navy Chief On China, Pakistan
China is supporting Pakistan Navy in building several warships and submarines, showing that the former is interested in strengthening the latter, Tripathi said.
"Their eight new submarines will have significant combat potential for Pakistan Navy but we are fully aware of their capabilities. That is why we are tweaking our concepts to be able to tackle all threats from our neighbours," he said.
Apart from deals for Rafale jets and Scorpene submarines, 62 ships and a submarine are currently under construction within the country for Indian Navy, the Chief of Naval Staff said.
A large number of platforms are waiting for induction in the next one year and at least one ship will be inducted into the Navy, Tripathi said.
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