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Androth, photographed on the day of her launch.
Class overview
Name	Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC)
Builders	Cochin Shipyard (CSL) Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) (in partnership with Larsen & Toubro (L&T))
Operators	Indian Navy
Preceded by	Kamorta-class by antecedence Abhay-class by role
Succeeded by	Next Generation Missile Vessels
Cost	₹12,622 crore (equivalent to ₹150 billion or US$1.8 billion in 2023) for 16 ships (FY 2020) ₹789 crore (equivalent to ₹929 crore or US$110 million in 2023) per ship (FY 2020)
Built	2021-present
Planned	16
Building	14
Completed	12
Active	0
General characteristics
Type	Corvette
Displacement	GRSE :900 tons CSL :700 tons
Length	GRSE :77.6 metres (255 ft) CSL :78 metres (256 ft)
Beam	GRSE :10.5 metres (34 ft) CSL :11.26 metres (36.9 ft)
Draught	GRSE : 2.7 metres (8.9 ft)
Propulsion	Water-jet propulsion
Speed	25 knots (46 km/h)
Range	1,800 nautical miles (3,300 km) (at 14 knots (26 km/h)
Complement	57 (7 officers + 50 sailors)
Sensors and processing systems	Combat Suite: ASW Combat Suite (presumably the DRDO-developed IAC MOD 'C' combat suite) Sonar: DRDO Abhay Hull-Mounted Sonar (HMS) Low Frequency Variable Depth Sonar (LFVDS) Management Systems: Fire Control System (FCS) Integrated Platform Management System (IPMS) Automatic Power Management System (APMS) Battle Damage Control System (BDCS)
Armament	Anti-Submarine Warfare: 1 × RBU-6000 anti-submarine rocket launcher 6 × Lightweight ASW Torpedo (presumably the Advanced Light Weight Torpedo (ALWT)) Anti-submarine mines (launched from mine-laying rails) Guns: 1 × CRN-91 30mm naval gun 2 × OFT 12.7 mm M2 Stabilized Remote Controlled Gun
Notes	Largest waterjet-powered vessels in the Indian Navy.

The Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC) corvettes, are a class of anti-submarine warfare (ASW) vessels currently being built for the Indian Navy, by Cochin Shipyard (CSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE). They were conceived as a replacement to the ageing Abhay-class corvettes of the Indian Navy, and are designed to undertake ASW duties – including subsurface surveillance in littoral waters, search-and-attack unit (SAU) missions and coordinated anti-submarine warfare operations with naval aircraft. They were also designed to provide secondary duties – including defense against intruding aircraft, minelaying and search-and-rescue (SAR).

Equipped with sophisticated sensors and ordnance, the vessels also possess the capabilities to interdict and destroy subsurface targets – primarily hostile submarines, within the vicinity of coastal waters. A total of 16 vessels are being built for the Indian Navy, jointly by CSL and GRSE under the Make in India initiative. The Indian Navy plans to have all 16 vessels in active service by 2026.

History

Background

In December 2013, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) –- the main acquisition panel subordinate to India's Ministry of Defence (MoD), approved the procurement of sixteen anti-submarine warfare (ASW) vessels capable of operating in shallow waters, at a cost of ₹13,440 crore (equivalent to ₹230 billion or US$2.7 billion in 2023), to replace the ageing Abhay-class corvettes of the Indian Navy – which were commissioned between 1989 and 1991.

In June 2014, the MoD issued a tender, worth USD2.25 billion under the 'Buy and Make India' category to private-shipyards – including Larsen & Toubro (L&T), ABG Shipyard, Pipavav Defense and Offshore Engineering (R-Naval), Goa Shipyard (GSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), for the procurement of the 16 anti-submarine vessels.

In October 2017, Cochin Shipyard (CSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) emerged as the first and the second-lowest bidder in the tender, respectively.

Purchase

On 29 April 2019, the MoD and GRSE signed a contract valued at ₹6,311 crore (equivalent to ₹78 billion or US$940 million in 2023) for eight anti-submarine vessels, to be delivered between 2022 and 2026. The contract stipulated that the first vessel had to be delivered within 42 months of the date of signing, with the remaining seven vessels delivered at regular intervals.

On 30 April 2019, the MoD and CSL signed a similar contract, valued at ₹6,311 crore (equivalent to ₹78 billion or US$940 million in 2023) for the construction of the remaining eight vessels – within a deadline of 84 months. Under this contract, the first ship was also expected to be delivered within a span of 42 months, with subsequent deliveries of two ships per year.

Construction

On 1 December 2020, CSL initiated the project's construction, with the steel-cutting of the first ASW-SWC vessel, Mahe (BY 523) at Kochi.

On 31 December 2020, GRSE initiated the construction of the stipulated vessels under its agreement, with the steel-cutting ceremony of the first of the eight vessels it had been assigned with, at L&T's shipyard at Kattupalli, near Chennai.

In July 2021, GRSE initiated the construction of two more vessels under its contract, with their respective steel-cutting ceremonies, while the keel of the first vessels (which had begun construction in December, 2020) was laid on 6 August 2021.

CSL initiated the steel-cutting of the fourth and fifth vessels of the series, on 1 December 2021.

Design

Under the contract for the construction of the 16 vessels, the two shipyards contracted by the Indian Navy – Cochin Shipyard (CSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), will respectively build eight vessels of their own, respective designs.

The first eight vessels assigned to GRSE were designed entirely by GRSE's in-house design team, while the remaining eight vessels assigned to CSL were developed by a joint venture – consisting of CSL, Smart Engineering & Design Solutions (India) Ltd. (SEDS) and DA-Group subsidiary Surma Ltd.

The ASW-SWC vessels are the biggest vessels of the Indian Navy to be powered by water-jet propulsion; the vessels' water-jet propulsion system allows the vessel to sprint swiftly for short intervals. The vessels are also reported to possess several features of stealth – including a reduced radar cross-section (RCS), a low acoustic signature and a low infrared signature.

Armament

The ASW-SWC vessels are equipped with one RBU-6000 anti-submarine rocket launcher and two sets of light-weight torpedo-tube launchers for launching anti-submarine torpedoes, (presumably the Advanced Light Weight Torpedo (ALWT)), for neutralizing enemy submarines. The vessels are also equipped with mine rails, which enables the vessel to lay anti-submarine mines along the seabed.

Aside from its primary anti-submarine weaponry, the vessels are also equipped with one small-calibre cannon (presumably the CRN-91 30 mm naval gun and two 12.7 mm M2 "Stabilised Remote Controlled Gun" remote-weapon stations (RWS), equipped with optronic control systems.

Sensors

For detecting and intercepting hostile submarines, the ASW-SWC vessels are equipped with sophisticated sonar equipment, including a hull-mounted sonar (HMS) and towed low-frequency variable-depth sonar (LFVDS). The LFVDS system is being procured from a partnership firm formed by Indian CFF Fluid Control Ltd. and German Atlas Elektronik. The system will be manufactured in India and supplied to GRSE and CSL, the firms engaged in construction of the ships. The hull-mounted sonar is the Abhay system an advanced active-cum-passive integrated sonar system designed and developed by NPOL, DRDO and manufactured by BEL.

Capabilities

Being vessels primed for anti-submarine warfare (ASW), the ASW-SWC vessels were conceived to undertake multiple missions, including "search-and-attack-unit" (SAU) roles, low-intensity maritime operations (LIMO), subsurface surveillance in littoral-waters and coordinated ASW operations with maritime-patrol aircraft (MPA). In addition, the vessels also possess the capability to interdict and destroy subsurface targets, within the vicinity coastal waters. The vessels can also be deployed for search-and-rescue (SAR) missions in littoral waters.

In their secondary role, the vessels will be able to lay mines, to protect domains of crucial importance, such as naval bases and commercial ports, from enemy submarines.

Ships of the class

Name	Pennant	Yard No	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Delivery	Commissioning	Status
Indian Navy
Mahe class
Mahe		523	Cochin Shipyard	30 August 2022	30 November 2023	Early 2025 (expected)		Launched
Malwan		524		21 February 2023
Mangrol		525
Malpe		526		8 December 2023	09 September 2024
Mulki		527
Magdala		528		16 December 2024
		529						Under Construction
		530
Arnala class
Arnala	P68	3029	GRSE	6 August 2021	20 December 2022	2025 (Planned)		Undergoing harbour trials
Anjadip	P73	3030		17 June 2022	13 June 2023			Launched
Amini	P75	3031			16 November 2023
Abhay		3032		13 June 2023	25 October 2024
Agray	P36	3033		31 December 2022	13 March 2024
		3034		10 May 2024				Under Construction
Androth	P69	3035		21 December 2021	21 March 2023			Launched
Akshay	P35	3036		31 December 2022	13 March 2024

See also

• Future ships of the Indian Navy
• List of active Indian Navy ships

References

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2. ^ "Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC)".
3. "LAUNCH OF 'ARNALA', FIRST SHIP OF ASW SWC (GRSE) PROJECT ON 20 DEC 22 AT M/s L&T, KATTUPALLI". pib.gov.in. PIB. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
4. "Government gives GRSE contract to build 8 Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts - GKToday". www.gktoday.in.
5. ^ "GRSE starts ASW-SWC corvette production in partnership with Larsen & Toubro". Janes.com.
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14. Bhatnagar, Gaurav Vivek (2013-12-24). "Four major acquisitions for the Navy and the Army approved". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2017-10-17.
15. "MoD clears Navy plans to get 16 shallow-water anti-sub vessels", The Tribune, 25 December 2013, retrieved 27 May 2015
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17. "Garden Reach Shipbuilders set to win ₹5,400-crore Navy order". @businessline. 16 January 2018.
18. Himatsingka, Anuradha (29 April 2019). "GRSE signs contract for 8 anti-submarine warfare shallow water crafts for Indian Navy". The Economic Times.
19. Himatsingka, Anuradha (29 April 2019). "GRSE signs contract for 8 anti-submarine warfare shallow water crafts for Indian Navy". The Economic Times.
20. "Contract Signing with M/s CSL and M/s GRSE for Acquisition of Sixteen Anti Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW SWC) for Indian Navy | Indian Navy". www.indiannavy.nic.in.
21. "GRSE Signs Contract for 08 Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Watercraft". psuwatch.com. 29 April 2019.
22. "Cochin Shipyard gets Rs 6,311 crore contract for anti-submarine warfare ships". Business Today. 30 April 2019.
23. "Cochin Shipyard gets ₹6,311 crore contract for anti-submarine warfare ships". mint. April 30, 2019.
24. "Indian ASW corvette programme cuts first steel - Shephard Media". www.shephardmedia.com.
25. @OfficialGRSE (31 December 2020). "Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd., (GRSE), a leading warship building under the administrative control o..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
26. "GRSE Starts ASW-SWC Corvette Production In Partnership With Larsen & Toubro".
27. "KEEL LAYING CEREMONY FOR 1st WARSHIP OF ASW SHALLOW WATER CRAFT PROJECT AND 3rd WARSHIP OF SURVEY VESSEL LARGE PROJECT". pib.gov.in.
28. ^ @cslcochin (2021-12-01). "Steel-Cutting ceremony of two Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts (ASWSWC), being built for Indian Navy, was carried out by Commodore V Ganapthy, Warship Production Superintendent, Indian Navy.This is the 4th and 5th in the series of 8 vessels" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
29. "Finnish DA-Group Participates in Indian Navy Project".
30. "ASW Shallow Water Craft - ASW-SWC". www.globalsecurity.org.
31. "Indian firm ties up with German major Atlas Elektronik for indigenous Sonar project". ANI News. 2024-06-13. Retrieved 2024-06-14.
32. "Technologies and Products - Abhay". www.drdo.gov.in. Retrieved 2024-08-23.
33. "Navy inducts 4 types of indigenously developed sonars". The Times of India. 2016-11-18. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2024-08-23.
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39. @cslcochin (2022-08-30). "Keel laying of the first Anti Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft for indian navy was held. Vice Admiral Kiran Deshmukh, AVSM, VSM, Comptroller of Warship Production & Acquisition laid the keel in the presence of madsnair66, CMD CSL and other senior CSL and Navy officials" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
40. Bureau, The Hindu (2023-11-30). "Three anti-submarine warfare ships for Indian Navy launched at Cochin Shipyard". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2023-11-30. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
41. "SIMULTANEOUS LAUNCH OF 'MAHE, MALVAN AND MANGROL', FIRST THREE SHIPS OF ASW SWC (CSL) PROJECT ON 30 NOV 23 AT CSL, KOCHI". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2023-12-08.
42. ^ "KEEL LAYING OF SIXTH SHIP (BY 528, MAGDALA) OF ASW SWC PROJECT AT CSL, KOCHI". Press Information Bureau. 16 December 2024. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
43. "KEEL LAYING OF SECOND SHIP (BY 524, MALWAN) AND THIRD SHIP (BY 525, MANGROL), AT M/S CSL, KOCHI, ON 21 FEB 23". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2023-02-21.
44. "KEEL LAYING OF FOURTH SHIP (BY 526, MALPE) AND FIFTH SHIP (BY 527, MULKI) OF ASW SWC PROJECT AT CSL, KOCHI ON 08 DEC 23". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2023-12-08.
45. "Indian Navy launches Anti-Submarine Warfare vessels Malpe and Mulki at Cochin Shipyard". The Economic Times. 2024-09-10. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 2024-10-13.
46. "Steel Cutting Ceremony of Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Crafts (ASWSWCS) For Indian Navy". CSL. 1 December 2020. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
47. "KEEL LAYING CEREMONY FOR 1st WARSHIP OF ASW SHALLOW WATER CRAFT PROJECT AND 3rd WARSHIP OF SURVEY VESSEL LARGE PROJECT". PIB. 2021-08-06.
48. Shukla, Ajai (2022-12-20). "Indigenously built INS Arnala touches the waters of Bay of Bengal". www.business-standard.com. Retrieved 2023-03-21.
49. @OfficialGRSE (17 June 2022). "GRSE achieved a rare feat by laying the keels of three vessels -SVL(Yard 3028), ASWSWC (Yard 3030 & 3031) together for the Indian Navy on 17 Jun 22" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
50. ^ "LAUNCH OF 'ANJADIP' THIRD SHIP OF ASW SWC (GRSE) AND KEEL LAYING OF 7TH SHIP OF ASW SWC PROJECT AT M/s L&T, KATTUPALLI ON 13 JUN 23". Press Information Bureau (Press release). Retrieved 2023-06-13.
51. "LAUNCH OF 'AMINI', FOURTH SHIP OF ASW SWC (GRSE) PROJECT ON 16 NOV 23 AT M/s L&T, KATTUPALLI". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2023-11-16.
52. "LAUNCH OF 'ABHAY', SEVENTH SHIP OF ASW SWC (GRSE) PROJECT". Press Information Bureau. 2024-10-25. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
53. ^ "KEEL LAYING BY SHRI GIRIDHAR ARAMANE, DEFENCE SECRETARY,FOR TWO WARSHIPS OF ASW SWC PROJECT AT GRSE, KOLKATA, ON 31 DEC 22". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
54. ^ "LAUNCH OF 'AGRAY' AND 'AKSHAY' FIFTH AND SIXTH SHIP OF ASW SWC (GRSE) PROJECT ON 13 MAR 24 AT M/S GRSE KOLKATA". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
55. "KEEL LAYING OF 8th ASW SWC (ex-GRSE) ON 10 MAY 24 AT M/S GRSE KOLKATA". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
56. "GRSE lays the keel of 5th Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft" (Press release). PIB. 21 December 2021.
57. "LAUNCH OF 'ANDROTH', SECOND SHIP OF ASW SWC (GRSE) PROJECT ON 21 MAR 23 AT M/s GRSE, KOLKATA". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2023-03-21.

External links

• Expression of Interest issued by GRSE for ASW-SWC

v t e Ship classes of the Indian Navy
Aircraft carriers	Vikrant (1961) Viraat Vikramaditya Vikrant (2013) Vishal
Destroyers	Hunt Q and R Rajput Delhi Kolkata Visakhapatnam Project 18
Frigates	River Blackwood Whitby Leopard Nilgiri Godavari Brahmaputra Talwar Shivalik Nilgiri Project 17B
Corvettes	Bathurst Arnala Durg Veer Abhay Khukri Kora Kamorta ASW-SWC Next Generation Missile Vessels
Fast attack craft	Vidyut Chamak NGFAC
Nuclear submarines	Attack Charlie Akula-II Indian SSN Ballistic missile Arihant S5**
Conventional submarines	Kalvari Vela Sindhughosh Shishumar Kalvari Project 75I
Midget submarines	Indian Navy Swimmer Delivery Vehicle
Amphibious warfare ships	Kumbhir Magar Shardul Jalashwa Indian MRSV
Research and survey vessels	Makar Sandhayak Sagardhwani Dhruv GRSE class
Patrol craft	Ajay Seaward Sukanya Super Dvora Mk II Trinkat Bangaram Car Nicobar Saryu
Minesweeper	Bangor Ton Ham Mahé Pondicherry GSL Mine Counter-Measure Vessels
Replenishment ship	Ambika Komandarm Fedko Aditya Deepak HSL
Tugboats	Anand Anjan Arga Balram Bahadur Bhim Gaj IRS Bhishm Madan Singh
Ferries	GSL Manoram Shalimar
Barges	Poshak Puran Vipul Modest Corporated Hooghly Sahayak GSL
Torpedo recovery	Astravahini Astradharani
Dredgers	Nikaraksha
Training	Tir ABG
Decommissioned Under construction Planned List of active Indian Navy ships Submarines of the Indian Navy List of ships of the Indian Navy Future of the Indian Navy

v t e Corvettes of the Indian Navy
Commissioned ships	Kamorta class Kamorta (P28) Kadmatt (P29) Kiltan (P30) Kavaratti (P31) Kora class Kora Kirch Kulish Karmuk Khukri class Kuthar Kirpan Khanjar Abhay class Abhay Veer class Vibhuti Vipul Vinash Vidyut Nashak Prabal Pralaya
Decommissioned ships	Flower class HMIS Gondwana HMIS Sind HMIS Mahratta HMIS Assam Bathurst class HMIS Punjab HMIS Bombay HMIS Bengal HMIS Madras Arnala class Arnala Androth Anjadip Andaman Amini Kamorta (P77) Kadmatt (P78) Kiltan (P79) Kavaratti (P80) Katchall Amindivi Durg class Vijaydurg Sindhudurg Hosdurg Veer class Veer Nirbhik Nipat Nirghat Prahar Nishank Abhay class Ajay Akshay Agray Khukri class Khukri Basset class HMIS Agra HMIS Ahmedabad HMIS Amritsar HMIS Baroda HMIS Berar HMIS Calcutta HMIS Cochin HMIS Cuttack HMIS Karachi HMIS Lahore HMIS Lucknow HMIS Madura HMIS Multan HMIS Nagpur HMIS Nasik HMIS Patna HMIS Peshawar HMIS Poona HMIS Quetta HMIS Rampur HMIS Shillong HMIS Travancore
Future ships	ASW-SWC INS Mahe INS Malwan INS Mangrol INS Arnala (P68) INS Androth (P69) 11 more ships NGMV 6 vessels
Footnotes Renamed as INS Bombay post republic. Renamed as INS Bengal post republic. Renamed as INS Madras post republic. Classified as Anti-Submarine Naval Trawlers

• Corvette classes