Indian Navy ki taakat mein ek aur bada izafa hua hai. Visakhapatnam ke Naval Dockyard mein Defence Minister Rajnath Singh ne indigenous stealth frigate INS Mahendragiri ko formally commission kiya. Yeh Nilgiri-class (Project 17A) ka satvan aur aakhri warship hai, jo Mumbai ke Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) mein bana hai.
INS Mahendragiri ko Indian Navy ke apne Warship Design Bureau ne design kiya hai aur ismein 75 pratishat se zyada indigenous content hai — yani yeh Aatmanirbhar Bharat mission ki ek badi safalta maani ja rahi hai. Ship mein MF-STAR active phased array radar, BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles aur Barak-8 long-range surface-to-air missiles jaise advanced weapons lage hain.
CODOG propulsion system ke saath yeh frigate anti-air, anti-surface aur anti-submarine — teenon tarah ki warfare ke liye taiyar hai. Iske alawa yeh maritime security missions, search and rescue operations aur humanitarian assistance jaise kaamon mein bhi istemal ho sakega.
18 mahino mein yeh Navy ka chhata stealth frigate hai jo commission hua hai, jisse saaf hai ki India apni naval capabilities ko kitni tezi se badha raha hai.