With time India’s need to own multiple defense equipments makes one realize that most of these machines, warships, and other equipments have been majorly imported for usage by the Military, Navy, and Airforce. Gradually there has been a shift of tide, in this regard as India seeks to be more self-reliant in steadily upscaling its own capability in these areas of defense.

India is adding more muscle power to its anti-submarine warfare with commissioning the last of four indigenously-built Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) stealth corvettes – INS Kavaratti to increase its naval presence in the Indian Ocean and Asia-Pacific regions as China increases its influence in the Indian Ocean.

The Anti-Submarine warfare stealth Corvette Naval Warships aka the INS Kavaratti, the last of four such units has been made ready for commissioning. Such warships are used for detecting and eliminating submarines and are capable of both long-range and short-range attacks.

India is slowly but steadily showcasing its muscle power due to the recent hostile activities along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) like testing missiles and advancements of defense capabilities.

INS Kavaratti and Kiltan are the first two major warships developed under project 28 in India’s arsenal which are built with Carbon-fiber composite structure. INS Kavaratti has the missing air defense capability which would be handled by fitting a short-range surface-to-air missile (SRSAM) for these Kamorta-class vessels.

Both the ships are considered to be 90% indigenous and have been setting up the SRSAM capability in the Navy with a command center to deploy such missiles from the vessel. The command center can control certain attack parameters for the ships.

The Navy’s statement further added that the ship’s weapon-sensor suite is mostly indigenous showcasing India’s self-reliance capability in this niche area. The specifications of the ship include a 110 m height, a 14 m breadth, and a capability to sail at a speed of 25 knots. It has a displacement of 3300 tonnes and a range of 3450 nautical miles. The ship is also projected to carry an Anti- Submarine Warfare helicopter and is capable of fighting in nuclear, biological chemical warfare scenarios.

The author is a student member of Amity Centre of Happiness.