New Delhi: Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Ltd. (GRSE) has signed a contract worth approximately Rs 32,000 crore with the Indian Navy for the construction of five Next Generation Corvettes (NGCs), marking a major milestone in India's indigenous warship-building programme.
The contract has been signed in New Delhi on November 2 by Dinesh Kumar, Joint Secretary and Additional Member (Shipbuilding), Ministry of Defence, and Cdr Shantanu Bose (Retd), Director (Shipbuilding), GRSE. Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh, GRSE Chairman and Managing Director Cmde PR Hari (Retd), and other senior officials from the Ministry of Defence, Indian Navy and GRSE were present on the occasion.
GRSE had emerged as the lowest bidder (L1) for the prestigious project. The contract further strengthens the Kolkata-based Navratna defence PSU's position in India's indigenous naval shipbuilding programme.
The Next Generation Corvettes will feature enhanced operational capabilities, advanced sensors and sophisticated weapons systems. Each vessel will measure 127 metres in length, with a beam of 17.6 metres and a specified deadweight tonnage of 4,950 tonnes. The warships will have an endurance of 14 days at sea without replenishment and a maximum speed of 26 knots.
Designed to accommodate 11 officers and 139 sailors, the corvettes will be powered by an advanced Combined Diesel and Gas Turbine–Cross-Connect (CODAG-CC) propulsion arrangement, driving two Controllable Pitch Propellers (CPP).
The vessels will undertake a wide range of maritime missions, including offensive ship-to-ship and ship-to-surface missile attacks, anti-missile defence, anti-submarine warfare, escort duties, maritime interdiction operations and local naval defence.
Their proposed weapons systems will include Medium Range Anti-Ship Missiles, Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missiles (MRSAM) and 324 mm torpedo tubes. The armament package will also feature an OTO Melara 76 mm Super Rapid Gun Mount, an AK-630 Close-In Weapon System and 12.7 mm stabilised remote-controlled guns integrated with an Electro-Optic-based Fire Control System.
The sensor suite will include an Electro-Optical Infrared Search and Track (EOIRST) system and a Multi-Function Surveillance, Track and Guidance Radar (MFSTAR). The warships will also have helicopter-operating capabilities.
The new contract adds to GRSE's ongoing shipbuilding programme. The company is currently building nine warships, including an advanced guided-missile frigate under Project 17A, four Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWCs) and four Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessels.
Apart from these, GRSE is executing orders for 36 other platforms, including 13 vessels for export.
Over the past six decades, GRSE has delivered 118 warships to the Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard and friendly foreign nations. The company has built more than 800 platforms and has the infrastructure to undertake the concurrent construction of up to 28 ships.
The Rs 32,000-crore contract reinforces GRSE's role in strengthening India's maritime defence preparedness and advancing the government's Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative in defence manufacturing.
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