Cochin Shipyard delivers first anti-submarine warfare craft to Indian Navy

Indian shipbuilding and repair company Cochin Shipyard delivered 'Mahe', the first of eight Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts (ASW SWCs) that were indigenously designed and built by the company, to the Indian Navy on Thursday.

According to Cochin Shipyard PRO, the acceptance form was signed between Dr. S Harikrishnan, Director (Operations), Cochin Shipyard Limited and Commander Amit Chandra Choubey, Commanding Officer (Designate), Mahe in the presence of Rear Admiral R Adhisrinivasan, CSO (Tech), Western Naval Command, Cmde Anup Menon, Warship Production Superintendent, Kochi and other senior officials of Indian Navy and CSL.

The Cochin Shipyard says the warship has been designed and constructed in accordance with the Classification Rules of Det Norske Veritas (DNV). The 78 m long warship is the largest Indian Naval warship propelled by a Diesel Engine-Waterjet combination. The ship has been designed for underwater surveillance, Search & Rescue operations and Low Intensity Maritime Operations (LIMO).

According to the Shipbuilding company, the ship is capable of conducting ASW operations in coastal waters and has advanced mine-laying capabilities; hence, the induction of ASW SWC ships would significantly boost the shallow water Anti-Submarine Warfare capabilities of the Indian Navy.

Earlier, the sixth vessel (Named as INS Magdala) in the series of eight Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts (ASW SWC) was launched on Saturday at Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), Kochi, the Ministry of Defence said in a press release. In keeping with naval maritime tradition, the ship was launched by Renu Rajaram in the presence of Vice Admiral Rajaram Swaminathan, Controller of Warship Production and Acquisition (CWP & A), along with senior officials from the Indian Navy and CSL.

This ship is indigenously designed and built by Cochin Shipyard Limited. Delivery of the first ship is planned for the end of October 2025. ASW SWCs will augment underwater domain awareness, Anti-Submarine Warfare and Mine Laying capabilities.