KOCHI: Three ships in the series of eight Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts (ASWSWC) constructed at Cochin Shipyard Limited for the Indian Navy were simultaneously launched at the Shipyard in Kochi on Thursday. The three ships, which would be named INS Mahe, INS Malvan, and INS Mangrol upon commissioning into the Indian Navy, will be ready for delivery by November 2024.
The ships were launched in the presence of Vice Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Sanjay J Singh; Commander in Chief of Strategic Forces Command, Vice Admiral Suraj Berry; and Commandant of the Indian Naval Academy, Vice Admiral Puneet Bahl. The chairman and managing director of CSL, Madhu S Nair, played host at the function.
The launch follows the signing of the contract between the state-run Cochin Shipyard Limited and the Defence Ministry, in 2019 for a Rs 6,311 crore contract for the construction of eight ASWSWCs for the Indian Navy. “These Mahe class ships will replace the Navy’s in-service Abhay class ASW corvettes and are designed for anti-submarine operations in coastal waters, low-intensity maritime, mine laying, and sub-surface surveillance operations,” officials said.