Stealth frigate INS Tamal commissioned into Indian Navy in Russia

In significant naval developments, the Indian Navy commissioned a new warship, INS Tamal, at the Yantar Shipyard in Kaliningrad, Russia, on Tuesday, while Mumbai-based Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) delivered the ship Udaygiri to the Navy. It is expected to be commissioned next month.

Udaygiri is the second of the seven frigates under construction at MDL, Mumbai and GRSE, Kolkata. The first warship of this series, the INS Nilgiri, was commissioned in January this year.

Meanwhile, in Russia, the commissioning was carried out in the presence of Western Navy Commander Vice Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh. INS Tamal is the second ship of its class; the first, INS Tushil, was commissioned in December last year.

INS Tamal is the 51st warship being produced under India-Russia collaboration in the past 65 years.

Vice Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh said, “Commissioning of INS Tamal into the Indian Navy marked a milestone in the country's maritime defence capabilities and Indo-Russian cooperation.”

"I am confident that the ship will prove its mettle as a force multiplier in our operational architecture, towards safeguarding national maritime interests and promoting maritime security."

Though being built in Russia, the ship has 26% indigenous components, including the BrahMos long-range cruise missile and Humsa-NG sonar system. The construction of the next two ships of the class in India further enhances the scope, potential, and wide horizon in harnessing and synergising mutual strengths and joint capabilities.

The Indian Navy stated that INS Tamal is a formidable moving fortress at sea, designed for blue water operations across the spectrum of naval warfare in all four dimensions—air, surface, underwater, and electromagnetic. It is an amalgamation of Indian and Russian technologies, with a host of state-of-the-art communication and network-centric operational capabilities.

The ship has been equipped with complex automated systems for nuclear, biological, and chemical defence, including damage control and fire-fighting, all of which can be operated centrally from sheltered posts. These systems aid in minimising casualties, achieving rapid restoration of combat effectiveness, and enhancing combat capability and survivability.

INS Tamal is manned by a crew of about 250 sailors and 26 officers. The ship will soon embark on her maiden passage back to her homeport of Karwar in Karnataka.