LAUNCH OF ‘ARNALA’, FIRST SHIP OF ASW SWC(GRSE) PROJECT

Source: The post is based on the article “LAUNCH OF ‘ARNALA’, FIRST SHIP OF ASW SWC(GRSE) PROJECT” published in PIB on 21st December 2022

What is the News?

Indian Navy Ship(INS) Arnala was launched at Larsen & Toubro’s (L&T’s) Kattupalli shipyard near Chennai.

What is INS Arnala?

INS Arnala is the first of the eight indigenously-built anti-submarine warfare shallow watercraft (ASW-SWC).

Purpose: To undertake anti-submarine operations in coastal waters and Low-Intensity Maritime Operations (LIMO) including subsurface surveillance in littoral waters.

Built by: Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE)

Named after: The ship has been named ‘Arnala’ to signify the strategic maritime importance accorded to the island of Arnala, located about 13 kilometers north of Vasai, Maharashtra by Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.

Replaces: Arnala class of ships will replace the Abhay class ASW Ships of the Indian Navy.

Features: The ships have a displacement of 900 tonnes with a maximum speed of 25 knots and endurance of 1800 nautical miles(NM).

– It will also have over 80% indigenous content, ensuring that large-scale defence production is executed by Indian manufacturing units.