The Indian Navy earlier this month commissioned the first of 16 Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC), essentially a light corvette, to enhance the protection of its vast coastline against subsurface threats such as submarines, midget submarines and unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs).
INS Arnala, the first of 16 indigenously designed and built Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC), which is essentially a corvette, was commissioned into the Eastern Naval Command of the Indian Navy on 18 June. The commissioning ceremony took place at the Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam, in the presence of Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan.
Among the others present were Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command Vice Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar, CWP&A Vice Admiral Rajaram Swaminathan, GRSE Chairman and Managing Director Commander P. R. Hari, IN (Retd.), Coast Guard Commander (Eastern Seaboard) ADG Donny Michael, senior officials from Indian Navy and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) and Larsen & Toubro Shipbuilding (L&T), civilian dignitaries, ex- Commanding Officers of erstwhile Arnala and guests.
The ASW-SWC programme began in June 2014, when the Ministry of Defence (MoD) issued a tender to private shipyards for the procurement of 16 specialised vessels to safeguard India’s vast coastline. Following a competitive evaluation process, Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) emerged as the lowest and second-lowest bidders, respectively, in October 2017. In April 2019, both GRSE and Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) had signed contracts to build eight ASW SWC ships each.
The Indian ASW-SWC was designed and constructed under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model – the first of its kind in India – where a major public sector undertaking (PSU) shipyard, GRSE, collaborated with the capable private shipyard L&T Kattupalli. This innovative approach marked a significant milestone in India’s shipbuilding ecosystem. INS Arnala was launched in December 2022 while it holds particular distinction, as it earned GRSE the Raksha Mantri’s Award the same year for designing the ‘most silent ship’. Two years later, in October 2024, the ship started its sea trials. GRSE is currently constructing seven additional ASW-SWC vessels for the Indian Navy.
Simultaneously, CSL is building eight vessels under the same programme but of a different design, the Mahe class. Deliveries of CSL’s ships are scheduled between August 2025 and June 2028. Once inducted, INS Arnala and the remaining 15 vessels will replace the ageing Abhay-class corvettes (customised variants of the Russian Pauk-class corvettes), commissioned between 1989 and 1991, significantly enhancing the Indian Navy’s coastal defense and anti-submarine capabilities.
The warship features 80% indigenous content, integrating advanced systems from major Indian defence firms along with components from smaller enterprises. This approach ensures that large-scale defence production is carried out by domestic manufacturers, fostering employment, enhancing national capabilities, and strengthening self-reliance in shipbuilding and defence technology.
(Naval News)