India, an emerging maritime power at the center of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), is evolving its navy into a blue-water navy. This transition is driven not only by military need, but by the continual and overarching strategic landscape shifts, particularly the emergence of great-power competition due to China’s growing naval footprint. A central focus of India’s transition will be its emphasis on next-generation warships that reflect self-reliance, the highest level of individual technology and long-range operations.
The Strategic Vision: Securing the Seas
India has a total of 7,800 km of coastline and over 90% of its trade volume is transported by sea routes. Therefore, India’s economic and security interest is unavoidably linked to the maritime domain. The Indian Navy’s Maritime Capability Perspective Plan, updated for a fleet of 175 warships by 2035, focuses on freedom of navigation, continued naval power projection, protection of Sea Lanes of Communication (SLOCs), regional naval power, and leadership.
India’s next-gen naval strategy focuses on four pillars:
- Indigenous shipbuilding under Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
- Integration of advanced technologies.
- Regional dominance in the Indo-Pacific.
- Strengthening of maritime partnerships and infrastructure.
Next-Generation Platforms: The Vanguard of Indian Sea Power
INS Vikrant (IAC-1) represented a milestone because it was India’s first INDIGENOUS aircraft carrier. It was commissioned in 2022. It was an excellent example of India’s ability to produce complex warships in country and form the future of India’s carrier battle groups.
Project 15B – Visakhapatnam-class Destroyers, such as INS Surat, are armed with BrahMos missiles, Barak-8 SAMs, torpedoes, and also AI-driven combat systems. With 72% indigenous content, INS Surat is India’s first AI-enabled destroyer. It has the ability to undertake air, surface and subsurface warfare while conducting aerial maritime surveillance.
Project 17A – Nilgiri-class Frigates are stealth multi-role warships like INS Nilgiri and INS Mahendragiri, incorporating radar-absorbing materials, integrated platform management systems, and advanced sensors. These 6,670-tonne frigates combine speed, stealth, and firepower.
Next-Generation Corvettes (Project 28A) and Next-Generation Offshore Patrol Vessels (NGOPVs) are well-suited modular, flexible warships for Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), convoy/patrol protection and protection against piracy, thus enhancing coastal and extended maritime operational capability.
INS Vagsheer is the sixth Scorpene-class submarine, and it reinforces undersea deterrence. Negotiations are being finalized for additional submarines and with Project-75(I) currently planned for AIP equipped platforms, India sits differently in addressing submarine fleet shortfalls.
The Project 18 Destroyers, which are expected to weigh 13,000 tonnes, will have Integrated Electric Propulsion (IEP), stealth design, artificial intelligence and advanced weapon systems including directed-energy devices and railguns.
Innovation and Indigenization: A Builder’s Navy
Future warships will incorporate:
- AI-powered command systems
- Hybrid propulsion for sustainability
- Electromagnetic catapults (EMALS) for aircraft carriers
- Directed Energy Weapons (DEWs)
- Advanced missile systems like BrahMos-II and Sagarika SLBMs.
Strategic Depth and Regional Presence
As a means to counter China’s “String of Pearls” and growing presence of the PLA (People’s Liberation Army) Navy, which is predicted to hit 555 ships by 2030, India is strengthening its strategic locations. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are being developed into a forward-operating base. INS Kadamba (Karwar) and INS Varsha (Visakhapatnam) are expanding to accommodate aircraft carriers and nuclear submarines.
India’s mission-based deployments ensure a permanent presence in chokepoints such as:
India is also bolstering collaborations through frameworks like Quad (with US, Japan, and Australia) and through joint naval exercises, like MALABAR, MILAN and VARUNA.
Maritime Infrastructure and Information Warfare
India is upgrading its cyber and information warfare capabilities. Initiatives like the Information Fusion Centre for the Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) promote real-time sharing of intelligence with like-minded navies. These upgrades, along with the indigenous development of unmanned surface vehicles and unmanned underwater vehicles, along with autonomous drones and smart mines will reshape naval warfare in the years to come.
Conclusion:
Next-generation Indian warships are more than steel and firepower; they are strategic instruments of a self-reliant nation, a more self-reliant India that is confident with its naval capabilities; they embody an India that has declared it is ready to lead the Indo-Pacific maritime order, protect sea lines of communication, and provide a strong counter to aggressive, revisionist powers. This transformation in India’s naval power is not just a matter of matching and countering China or regional presence; it is about protecting the maritime rules-based order for global stability while projecting India’s national naval interests for strategic and economic purposes and protecting India’s trade lifelines.
By 2035, with a 175 ship navy consisting of indigenous aircraft carriers, nuclear submarines, AI-enabled destroyers and smart corvettes, India will be well beyond a regional power; it will become a permanent player and shaper of global maritime affairs on behalf of the rules-based order. The Indian Navy will not just be transiting the high seas, rendering them controllable under the capacity of a maritime power. They will be shaping the oceans, echoing Admiral Mahan’s words, “Whoever controls the Indian Ocean dominates Asia.”
