The Indian Navy has commissioned two first-of-class indigenously designed and built warships. The guided missile destroyer, INS Kolkota, formally joined the fleet at Mumbai on 16 August, followed a week later by the anti-submarine corvette, INS Kamorta at Visakhapatnam.
India has traditionally bought its major warships second-hand so the introduction of advanced domestically-made ships is regarded as a symbolic moment towards of self-reliance. However, Indian ship building remains on a learning curve as both ships are years late and have entered service without receiving their full complement of equipment.
At 7,400 tonnes, INS Kolkota is the country’s largest and most powerful home-built warship. The first of three Project 15A ships is 60 per cent indigenous, with principal imported components that include Russian steel, Ukrainian gas turbines, propellers and shafts, and an Israeli 3-D air search radar and vertical launch system for Barak surface to air missiles.
