Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stresses need for self-reliance in making warships, offshore vessels

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's address at the Bhumi Pujan ceremony for five infrastructure projects at Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) in Kochi on February 17, 2024, marks a significant milestone in India's journey toward strategic autonomy in naval capabilities. This event is not merely a ceremonial groundbreaking; it represents the tangible implementation of the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' (Self-Reliant India) vision in the critical domain of defence manufacturing, specifically warship and offshore vessel construction. To understand the gravity of this development, one must appreciate the historical context. For decades after independence, India relied heavily on imports — primarily from the Soviet Union/Russia, and later from Western nations — for its frontline warships and submarines. The 1960s saw the establishment of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), but indigenous design capability remained limited. The turning point came with the launch of the Indian Navy's Directorate of Naval Design (now Surface Ship Group) in the 1970s, leading to the Godavari-class frigates (1980s) and the Delhi-class destroyers (1990s). However, the real inflection point was the approval of the 'Make in India' initiative in 2014, followed by the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan' in May 2020, which imposed import embargoes on 310+ defence items under positive indigenization lists (PILs) issued by the Department of Military Affairs (DMA) under the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). The five projects launched at CSL — including a new dry dock, a ship lift system, and infrastructure for building larger vessels — are designed to overcome a critical bottleneck: the lack of adequate infrastructure to build and maintain next-generation warships like the Project-75I submarines, Next Generation Missile Vessels (NGMVs), and the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier-2 (IAC-2). CSL, a 'Navratna' Defence Public Sector Undertaking (DPSU) under the Ministry of Defence, has already delivered India's first Indigenous Aircraft Carrier, INS Vikrant (commissioned September 2022), a feat that placed India in an elite club of nations capable of designing and building aircraft carriers. The new infrastructure will enable CSL to handle vessels up to 70,000 DWT (Deadweight Tonnage), positioning it to compete globally in commercial shipbuilding — a market currently dominated by China, South Korea, and Japan. The constitutional and policy framework underpinning this push is robust. Article 253 of the Constitution empowers Parliament to make laws for implementing international treaties, which includes obligations under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) — where India's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 2.37 million sq km necessitates a strong naval presence. The Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020, particularly Chapter II (Buy Indian-IDDM) and Chapter III (Buy Indian), prioritizes indigenous design and development. The Strategic Partnership (SP) model, introduced in 2017, encourages private sector participation (e.g., L&T, Reliance Defence) alongside DPSUs. Furthermore, the National Maritime Security Coordinator (NMSC) and the Maritime Theatre Command (under the theatreization plan) will require a robust indigenous fleet. Economically, the shipbuilding sector has a high multiplier effect — generating employment across steel, electronics, engineering, and services. The government's Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Policy (2016, revised 2023) provides 20% subsidy on contract price for Indian shipyards bidding for global commercial orders. Politically, self-reliance in warship construction reduces vulnerability to supply chain disruptions and foreign policy leverage — as witnessed during the 1998 nuclear sanctions or the recent delays in Russian spares due to the Ukraine conflict. Internationally, a strong Indian Navy, built on indigenous platforms, enhances India's role as a 'Net Security Provider' in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), supporting the SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) doctrine articulated by PM Modi in 2015. Looking ahead, the success of these projects will determine whether India can meet the Indian Navy's goal of a 175-ship fleet by 2035 (from ~130 currently). Key challenges remain: timely project execution (CSL's dry dock has faced delays), technology absorption in niche areas like gas turbines (currently imported from Ukraine/UK), and workforce skilling. The upcoming commissioning of the first Project-17A frigate (INS Nilgiri) and Project-15B destroyer (INS Visakhapatnam-class follow-ons) will be litmus tests. For aspirants, this event encapsulates the intersection of defence policy, industrial capability, constitutional mandate, and geopolitical strategy — a quintessential topic for UPSC GS Paper 3 (Security), GS Paper 2 (Governance), and Essay papers.