New Delhi: The Indian Navy commissioned INS Mahendragiri, the sixth Project-17A Nigiri-class indigenous stealth frigate, at the Visakhapatnam dockyard on Saturday. The defence minister, Rajnath Singh, was the chief guest at the event, and he led the proceedings during the induction ceremony.
The defence minister arrived in Visakhapatnam on Friday evening. He was received by the chief of naval staff (CNS), Admiral Krishna Swaminathan.
The ship is named after the majestic INS Mahendragiri mountain range in the Eastern Ghats.
Designed in-house by the Navy’s Warship Design Bureau (WDB) and built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), Mumbai, INS Mahendragiri, exemplifies India’s growing expertise in indigenous warship design and construction.
Incorporating advanced stealth features, enhanced survivability, reduced radar signature, and a high degree of automation, the frigate is powered by a modern combined diesel or gas (CODOG) propulsion system, enabling high-speed operations with exceptional endurance across the full spectrum of maritime missions.
“INS Mahendragiri has a deep displacement of 6,670 tonnes, which can run at a speed of 28 knots,” Singh said during the commissioning ceremony of the ship. It is a multi-mission frigate, meaning that it can tackle missions in the air, enemy present on the surface, and the submarines hidden under the surface of the water, he added.
A blue-water ship, the frigate consists of 75 percent indigenous content. The ship’sconstruction brought together a vast network of Indian industries, including numerous micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), generating employment while strengthening the nation’s defence industrial base.
It is equipped with an advanced suite of indigenous and state-of-the-art weapons and sensors, including surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missile systems, sophisticated electronic-warfare capabilities, comprehensive anti-submarine warfare systems, and an integrated combat management system, according to the Indian Navy. It is capable of undertaking anti-air, anti-surface, and anti-submarine operations. INS Mahendragiri is equally suited for maritime security, power projection, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR), search and rescue (SAR), and sustained presence missions.
The commissioning of INS Mahendragiri under the Project-17A programme strengthens the Navy’s combat capability while reinforcing India’s position as a leading indigenous warship-building nation.
INS Mahendragiri lives up to her motto: ‘Mighty-Majestic–Matchless’.
Speaking at the commissioning ceremony, Rajnath Singh said, “The first ship of the series, INS Nilgiri, was commissioned in January 2025 by the prime minister, Narendra Modi, himself. In 2025, INS Udaygiri and INS Himgiri were commissioned together. This year, in April 2026, in Visakhapatnam, INS Taragiri was commissioned.” Only a few weeks ago, in June, Modi commissioned INS Dunagiri during the tri-commissioning in Kolkata. “Today, the sixth ship (of the series) is being inducted into the Navy.”
Mahendragiri is seen as a testimony to India’s ship-building capability, the naval industrial ecosystem’s speed, and the country’s self-confidence, the defence minister said. He added that India has now moved from looking towards other countries for its defence needs. However, he said that today, Indians are now building ships in Indian shipyards – that too with great speed, one after the other.