President Murmu to launch Navy’s stealth frigate on August 17

Kolkata, August 11

President Droupadi Murmu will launch a stealth frigate for the Indian Navy here on August 17, an official said.

Built by Defence PSU Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited (GRSE), this will be the third and last stealth frigate the warship maker was contracted to build for the Navy under Project 17A.

The President will launch the ship at the GRSE’s shipbuilding facility on the banks of River Hooghly here, the official said.

The state-of-the-art ship will be fitted with latest gadgets and undergo extensive trials before being handed over to the Navy for commissioning into service.

P17A ships are guided missile frigates, each of which is 149 metres long, with displacement of approximately 6,670 tonnes and a speed of 28 knots, according to a GRSE official. They are a follow-on class of the P17 Shivalik class frigates with improved stealth features, advanced weapons and sensors and platform management systems.

The Navy had placed orders for seven stealth frigates, four of which went to Mazagon Dock Ltd (MDL) and three to GRSE.

The Rs 19,294-crore contract for construction of the three stealth frigates under Project 17A is the largest-ever order for GRSE.

Though GRSE has other production activities like a diesel engine plant in Ranchi and bailey bridge construction, over 95 per cent of its revenues are generated from shipbuilding.

The second P17A stealth frigate built by GRSE was launched by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on July 15, 2022.

The first P17A frigate built by GRSE was launched in December, 2020 by Madhulika Rawat, wife of then Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat.