RNAVAL's eligibility question holds up warship orders worth Rs 630 bn

The navy has a major grouse with RNAVAL, which has failed to deliver five naval offshore patrol vessels (NOPVs), an order that Pipavav Shipyard won in 2001

On Wednesday, the defence ministry announced a contract for building two diving support vessels (DSVs) awarded to the defence public sector undertaking (DPSU), Hindustan Shipyard (HSL) for an estimated Rs 20 billion.

Obscured by the fanfare around this relatively small order, warship building projects worth at least Rs 630 billion have ground to a standstill. In all these cases, the defence ministry has halted tendering in wait for a government decision on whether to allow, or to exclude, Anil Ambani’s shipbuilding firm – Reliance Naval and Engineering (RNAVAL) – from those contracts.

The navy has a major grouse with RNAVAL,