Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan, will officiate the commissioning ceremony of INS Arnala, India’s first Anti‑Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW‑SWC), on June 18 at the Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam. The event, hosted by Vice Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar, Flag Officer Commanding‑in‑Chief of the Eastern Naval Command, will include senior naval officers and representatives from Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) and L&T Shipbuilders.

INS Arnala is the lead ship in a series of sixteen ASW‑SWC vessels built under India’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative. Constructed through a public–private partnership between GRSE (Kolkata) and L&T Shipbuilders, this class features over 80% indigenous content, integrating systems from Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Mahindra Defence, MEIL, and others, with contributions from more than 55 MSMEs.

Measuring 77 m in length and displacing more than 1,490 tonnes, Arnala is the largest Indian warship propelled by diesel‑engine–waterjet propulsion. It is designed for subsurface surveillance, search‑and‑rescue missions, and low‑intensity maritime operations in coastal waters.

The commissioning of INS Arnala signifies a major stride in strengthening India’s coastal defence capabilities and advancing naval self‑reliance, reinforcing the nation’s maritime posture in the Indian Ocean Region.