The Indian Navy has ordered 68 warships and other boats worth about Rs 2 lakh crore as part of its efforts to build a strong blue-water force. This strategic move fits with India’s overall goal of protecting its many geostrategic interests and countering China’s growing position in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
The Indian Navy already has 132 warships, 143 planes, and 130 helicopters. In the coming years, India will build eight next-generation corvettes, nine submarines, five survey vessels, and two multi-purpose vessels. This is called “acceptance of necessity” (AoN).
Even though domestic shipyards build ships slowly, older ships have to be taken out of service in stages, and money is tight, the Navy plans to have between 155 and 160 boats in its fleet by 2030.
But the numbers are still moving. The main goal is to have at least 175 boats, if not 200, in the fleet by 2035. This expansion is meant to give the IOR and the rest of the world a credible strategic reach, mobility, and freedom. It’s clear that a project like this will need to grow the number of fighter planes, fixed-wing planes, helicopters, and drones at the same time.
China’s growing threat in the ocean shows how important these measures are. China’s People’s Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN) is looking for more foreign bases to help with logistics in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and the wider Indo-Pacific. They already have bases in Djibouti, Karachi and Gwadar in Pakistan, and possibly Ream in Cambodia.
China’s navy power is also growing. Over the past ten years, the PLAN has added an incredible 150 warships. Projections even point to a PLAN with 555 warships in the next five to six years, with Chinese aircraft carriers operating in the IOR.
The Indian Navy, on the other hand, hasn’t even gotten the first permission for building a third aircraft carrier, a project that is expected to take over a decade. Instead of a more powerful and cost-effective 65,000-ton carrier, plans are in the works for a “repeat order” of the 45,000-ton INS Vikrant, which is still in the final stages of becoming combat-ready a year after it was put into service.
Another important problem is that the ability to fight underwater is getting worse. Due to delays in starting “Project-75-India,” which was supposed to build six modern diesel-electric submarines worth more than Rs 42,000 crore, the government decided to build an extra three Scorpene submarines from France at Mazagon Docks (MDL). These will be added to the first six subs, which cost over Rs 23,000 crore to build.
There is a bright side to all of these problems. As part of Project-17A, four 6,670-ton stealth frigates are being built at MDL and three at GRSE in Kolkata at a cost of Rs 45,000 crore. These will be sent out between 2024 and 2026.
Two more guided-missile cruisers, Imphal and Surat, will soon join the first two, INS Visakhapatnam and INS Mormugao, which were recently put into service as part of the Rs 35,000 crore Project-15B at MDL. Also, Hindustan Shipyard (HSL) just signed a deal worth over Rs 19,000 crore for five 44,000-tonne fleet support ships. The ships will be delivered over the next four years.
Also, the Cochin Shipyard plans to build six next-generation weapon ships for a total cost of Rs 9,805 crore, with deliveries starting in March 2027. Lastly, the 11 next-generation offshore patrol boats, seven of which will be built at Goa Shipyard and four at GRSE, will start to be delivered in September 2026. They will cost a total of Rs 9,781 crore.
