In line with the government’s vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, the
Ministry of Defence on Thursday 30 March signed contracts with Indian shipyards
for acquisition of 11 next generation offshore patrol vessels and six next
generation missile vessels at a cost of nearly Rs 19,600 crore, officials said.
Of the 11 ships, seven will be
indigenously designed, developed and manufactured by the Goa Shipyard Ltd (GSL)
and four by the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata, the
ministry said in a statement.
The delivery of the ships is scheduled to commence from September 2026,
it said.
The acquisition of these ships will enable the Navy to maintain its
combat capability and meet various operational requirements such as
anti-piracy, counter-infiltration, anti-poaching, anti-trafficking,
noncombatant evacuation operations, search and rescue (SAR) and protection of
offshore assets, the statement said.
The construction of these ships
will generate an employment of 110 lakh man-days over a period of seven and
half years, it added.