The Indian Navy is set to commission its sixth Project 17A indigenous stealth frigate, Mahendragiri (F38), at Visakhapatnam later this week. Designed by the Navy’s Warship Design Bureau and built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited, Mumbai, the warship exemplifies India’s growing expertise in indigenous warship design and construction. The commissioning of Mahendragiri will mark another significant milestone in the successful execution of the Project 17A programme. The warship incorporates advanced stealth features, enhanced survivability, a reduced radar signature, and a high degree of automation.
The frigate is powered by a modern combined diesel or gas propulsion system, enabling high-speed operations with exceptional endurance across the full spectrum of maritime missions. The stealth frigate is equipped with an advanced suite of indigenous and state-of-the-art weapons and sensors, including surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missile systems, sophisticated electronic warfare capabilities, comprehensive anti-submarine warfare systems, and an integrated combat management system. Capable of undertaking anti-air, anti-surface, and anti-submarine operations, Mahendragiri is equally suited for maritime security, power projection, humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, search and rescue, and sustained presence missions.
With over 75 per cent indigenous content, the construction of the stealth frigate has brought together a vast network of Indian industries, including numerous micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), generating employment while strengthening the nation’s defence industrial base. The Navy said that as successive frigates of the class join the Fleet, they continue to strengthen the Indian Navy’s combat capability while reinforcing India’s position as a leading indigenous warship-building nation. Mahendragiri will serve as a formidable force multiplier, safeguarding the nation’s maritime interests and contributing to a secure, stable, and prosperous Indo-Pacific.
The frigate is named after the Mahendragiri mountain range in the Eastern Ghats, and embodies resilience, strength and unwavering resolve, according to the Navy. The frigate is the first naval warship to bear the name.
