President to launch advanced stealth frigate INS Vindhyagiri today - Things you need to know

The ship will be launched at Defence PSU Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd's (GRSE) facility on the banks of River Hooghly in Kolkata.

President Droupadi Murmu is all set to launch INS Vindhyagiri, a stealth ship of the Indian Navy on Thursday. Named after the mountain range in Karnataka, Vindhyagiri is the sixth ship of the Project 17A Frigates. The first five ships of the project were launched between 2019 and 2022. The ship will be launched at Defence PSU Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd's (GRSE) facility on the banks of River Hooghly in Kolkata.

INS Vindhyagiri (ANI)

Here's all you need to know about the stealth frigate:

• Vindhyagiri and the five other warships are follow-ons of Project 17 Class Frigates (Shivalik class) with improved features and advanced platform management systems.
• Vindhyagiri is the third and last stealth frigate that the Kolkata-based warship maker was contracted to build for the Navy under the project.
• Vindhyagiri, pays a befitting tribute to the distinguished service of its predecessor, the erstwhile INS Vindhyagiri, the Leander Class ASW Frigate.
• The old Vindhyagiri in its nearly 31 years of service from 08 Jul 81 to 11 Jun 12, had witnessed various challenging operations.
• Speaking about the warship an Indian Navy official said, “The newly christened Vindhyagiri stands as a symbol of India's determination to embrace its rich naval heritage, while propelling itself towards a future of indigenous defence capabilities.”
• A substantial 75 per cent of the orders for equipment and systems of Project 17A ships are from indigenous firms, including Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), the Navy added.
• The ship being painted in ash, black and red colour, has been designed in-house by the Indian Navy's warship design bureau, like other P17A stealth frigates.
• P17A ships are guided missile frigates, each of which is 149 metres long, with the displacement of approximately 6,670 tonnes and a speed of 28 knots, according to a GRSE official.