Barely a few weeks after the keel laying ceremony of the sixth ship in the Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW SWC) project, the ceremony for the seventh ship in the project was held on Wednesday.
Keel laying of 7th ASW SWC in the series of 8 Nos for @indiannavy was held at CSL,today. RAdm Upal Kundu, VSM, CoS, SNC laid the keel of the strategic vessel in the presence of @madsnair66, CMD, CSL and senior officials of IN & CSL.
— Cochin Shipyard Limited (@cslcochin) January 29, 2025
#ShipbuildingExcellence #MakeInIndia pic.twitter.com/Zn2lU0lve6
The ceremony was undertaken in the presence of Rear Admiral Upal Kundu, Chief of Staff, Southern Naval Command, and senior officials of the Indian Navy and Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL).
The event was held merely months after the launch of the fourth and fifth ships in the project in September.
According to the defence ministry, these developments demonstrate the steadfast efforts of the Indian Shipyards to meet the Indian Navy’s growing operational requirements.
Almost all major and auxiliary equipment and systems of these ships are sourced from indigenous manufacturers.
The contract for building eight ASW SWC ships was awarded to CSL in April 2019.
"The ships known as the ‘Mahe’ class, will be equipped with indigenously developed, state-of-the-art underwater sensors, and are envisaged to undertake anti-submarine operations in coastal waters as well as low intensity maritime operations (LIMO) and mine-laying operations," the defence ministry said in a release.
The first ship of the project is expected to be delivered in early 2025.
The defence ministry said apart from enhancing the Indian Navy’s anti-submarine warfare capabilities, the high indigenous content on these ships will generate large-scale employment and enhance the capabilities of Indian manufacturing units.
