By Vineet Dikshit

NewsGate Press Network

Vindhyagiri, the sixth Stealth Frigate of Project 17A being built at Garden Reach Yard in West Bengal on Thursday the 17th of August 2023.

President of India, Droupadi Murmu was present at the occasion along with West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

INS Vindhyagiri is part of Indian Navy’s most ambitious programme known as Project 17A.

Stealth frigates that are being built are the follow-on class of the Project 17 (Shivalik Class) Frigates, with improved stealth features, advanced weapons & sensors and platform management systems.

In all seven Project 17A Frigates are under various stages of construction at MDL and GRSE.

Frigate INS 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 to11 Jun 12, had witnessed various challenging operations and multinational exercises.

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.

Under the Project 17A program, a total of four ships by M/s MDL and three ships byM/s GRSE are under construction. The project’s first five ships have been launchedby MDL & GRSE, between 2019-2022.

Project 17A ships have been designed in-house by Indian Navy’s Warship Design Bureau, the pioneer organisation for all warship design activities.