Rs 19,000 crore project to build 5 fleet support ships gets Cabinet nod | India News – Times of India
The PM Modi-led Cabinet Committee on Security approved the project, accorded ‘acceptance of necessity (AoN)’ way back in December 2015, for execution by the Visakhapatnam-based Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) under the defence ministry.
“With the CCS sanction, the contract with HSL will now be inked in the next few days. The first fleet support ship, with a displacement of about 45,000-tonne, will be delivered in four years. Thereafter, one ship will come every year,” top defence sources told TOI.
The fleet support ships, the project for which has been awarded to HSL on “a nomination basis”, will help the Navy maintain operational readiness of its warships deployed at sea.
“The strategic reach and sustenance of warships is dependent on such fleet support ships,” another source said. The Navy is currently grappling with just four ageing fleet support ships, with the oldest one being commissioned over 30 years ago.
In sharp contrast, China is building new vessels at an astonishing rate to further add to what is already the world’s largest Navy with 350 warships and submarines. China, of course, is also fast expanding its presence in the Indian Ocean Region, while also helping Pakistan build a strong maritime force to challenge India in the Arabian Sea.
The Indian Navy, in turn, currently has around 130 warships and submarines, along with 230 aircraft, helicopters and drones. In the ongoing thrust for self-reliance, the Navy also has 43 ships and submarines currently on order, with 41 of them being built in Indian shipyards.
Among them are seven multi-role 6,670-tonne stealth frigates being constructed under Project-17A, four at the Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks and three at GRSE in Kolkata, at an overall cost of around Rs 45,000 crore. President Droupadi Murmu will “launch” into water the sixth P-17A frigate at GRSE on Thursday. The seven frigates are slated for delivery in the 2024-2026 timeframe.
