SOURCE: AFI
In a significant stride toward enhancing India’s maritime defense capabilities, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) marked a key milestone on April 22, 2025, with the signing of the Second Reading acceptance documents (D448) for INS Vela, the fourth Kalvari-class submarine under Project-75.
The ceremony, held at MDL’s headquarters in Mumbai, saw Cmde S B Jamgaonkar (Retd.), Director (Shipbuilding & Heavy Engineering) at MDL, and Rear Admiral R. Adhisrinivasan, Chief Staff Officer (Technical) of the Indian Navy, formalize the agreement in the presence of senior officials from both organizations. This development brings INS Vela closer to full operational commissioning, reinforcing India’s strategic presence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) amid rising geopolitical tensions and China’s growing naval footprint.
Named after the tiger shark, INS Vela is part of the Kalvari-class series, comprising six diesel-electric attack submarines built by MDL in collaboration with France’s Naval Group under Project-75. Launched on May 6, 2019, and delivered to the Indian Navy on November 9, 2021, INS Vela is designed for a range of missions, including anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare, intelligence gathering, mine-laying, and special operations. The submarine, equipped with advanced stealth features such as acoustic silencing techniques, low radiated noise levels, and precision-guided weapons like Exocet SM39 anti-ship missiles and torpedoes, enhances India’s underwater combat capabilities.
The signing of the Second Reading acceptance documents (D448) signifies the successful completion of critical post-delivery evaluations, including rigorous harbor and sea trials, ensuring the submarine meets the Indian Navy’s operational standards. This step is a precursor to INS Vela’s integration into active naval service, where it will join its predecessors—INS Kalvari (commissioned 2017), INS Khanderi (2019), and INS Karanj (2021)—in safeguarding India’s maritime interests.
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