On 2 November 2026, India’s Ministry of Defence signed contracts with Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) and Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) to build eight Next-Generation Corvettes for the Indian Navy.
Valued at INR538.67 billion (approximately US$5.7 billion), the programme will see GRSE construct five vessels and with the remaining three assigned to GSL.
The 4,950-tonne corvettes will measure 127m in length, and they will have a beam of 17.6m. They will be powered by a combined diesel and gas turbine cross-connect propulsion system driving two controllable-pitch propellers, giving them a maximum speed of 26kt.
Each vessel will accommodate eleven officers and 139 sailors.
According to GRSE, the ships will be armed with a Leonardo 76mm Super Rapid naval gun, AK-360 close-in weapon systems and 12.7mm remote weapon stations.
Their missile and underwater warfare capabilities will include indigenously developed medium-range anti-ship missiles, MRSAM medium-range surface-to-air missiles and 324mm torpedo tubes.
The vessels will also feature a flight deck and a multifunction surveillance, track and guidance radar.
Delhi said the programme marks the first time that vessels designed by the Indian Navy are being constructed by defence public sector undertakings selected through a competitive process. Previous shipbuilding programmes were generally awarded through nomination.
GSL described the programme as the largest in its history. The shipyard has previously built offshore patrol vessels, Veer-class (Tarantul-I) missile corvettes and, most recently, two Talwar-class frigates.
The contract forms part of a wider Indian naval modernisation effort spanning combatants, support vessels and carrier aviation. The Indian Navy is expanding its surface fleet while also developing its aircraft carrier and naval aviation capabilities.
On 29 October, a French Navy Rafale M fighter conducted its first landing trials aboard the Indian aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, ahead of planned delivery of the fighter type to India from 2029.
by Chen Chuanren
