INS Taragiri commissioned in Visakhapatnam, bolstering Indian Navy’s stealth and strike capabilities
Visakhapatnam, April 3. India added another advanced frontline warship to its fleet as Defence Minister Rajnath Singh commissioned INS Taragiri into the Indian Navy at Visakhapatnam on April 3. The stealth frigate is the fourth vessel of the Project 17A class and has been designed by the Navy’s Warship Design Bureau and built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited with extensive support from MSMEs.
Displacing about 6,670 tonnes, the warship incorporates advanced stealth features to significantly reduce its radar signature, enabling it to operate effectively in contested maritime environments. With over 75 percent indigenous content and delivered in reduced timelines, the vessel reflects India’s growing self-reliance and maturity in complex warship construction.
Addressing the commissioning ceremony, Singh described the frigate as a symbol of India’s technological advancement and maritime strength. He said the ship is built for high-speed transit and long endurance at sea, and is equipped with modern radar, sonar and missile systems, including BrahMos and medium-range surface-to-air missiles, enabling it to perform a wide spectrum of missions – from high-intensity combat to anti-piracy patrols, coastal surveillance and humanitarian assistance.
Emphasising India’s maritime imperatives, the Defence Minister noted that with a coastline of over 11,000 km and nearly 95 percent of trade moving by sea, a strong Navy is a strategic necessity. He highlighted the Navy’s round-the-clock presence across the Indian Ocean region to safeguard sea lanes, commercial shipping and energy routes amid global uncertainties.
Singh also underlined emerging dimensions of maritime security, including the protection of undersea data cables that carry the bulk of global digital traffic. He said India must adopt a broader, future-ready maritime security outlook that covers choke points, sea lanes and critical digital infrastructure. Advanced platforms such as INS Taragiri, he added, contribute to regional peace and stability.
He reiterated the government’s commitment to building one of the world’s strongest navies backed by an indigenous defence industry, noting the sharp rise in defence exports to ₹38,424 crore in FY 2025-26. He credited defence public sector undertakings and private industry for driving innovation and manufacturing under the ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ (Self-reliant India) initiative.
Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi recalled the legacy of the earlier INS Taragiri, a Leander-class frigate commissioned in 1980 that played a key role in developing India’s anti-submarine warfare capabilities. He said the new ship enters service at a time when the maritime security environment in the Indian Ocean Region is becoming increasingly complex due to shifting geopolitics, emerging technologies and non-traditional threats.
The ceremony featured the breaking of the commissioning pennant and the hoisting of the national flag onboard. Among those present were Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command Vice Admiral Sanjay Bhalla, and MDL CMD Captain Jagmohan.
INS Taragiri is powered by a combined diesel or gas propulsion system and an integrated platform management system, enhancing operational flexibility. Its combat suite includes supersonic surface-to-surface missiles, medium-range surface-to-air missiles and an advanced indigenous anti-submarine warfare suite.
The frigate will join the Eastern Fleet on the eastern seaboard, carrying forward the legacy of its predecessor while signalling India’s capability to design, build and operate sophisticated warships indigenously for a credible maritime posture in the Indo-Pacific.
