Ahead of the MQ-9B Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) deal with the United States, Indian Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh Tripathi said that 31 predator drones have been approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), and these platforms will boost surveillance and operational capabilities.

The Chief of Naval Staff, who launched multipurpose vessel Samarthak, manufactured by Larsen & Toubro, also said that 63 ships are being constructed by defence PSUs and private industry, and by 2027 the Indian Navy will become Atmanirbhar by 2047.

On October 9, the CCS approved the acquisition of 31 MQ-9B High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) UAV from General Atomics, worth approximately $ 3.1 billion. The deal is likely to be signed soon as October 31 is the last date; otherwise, the process will need to be re-negotiated. Of the 31 drones, the Navy will receive 15 and the Indian Army and Indian Air Force will receive 8 each.

When asked about the contract, Navy Chief Tripathi stated, “These are very capable platforms with large endurance and therefore they will help us tremendously in keeping our area of interest and our area of responsibility under surveillance so that we can know who is doing what and why that is very important because that is the starting point for any Naval action. We would like to ensure that as part of the overall maritime security, Indian Navy is fully aware of what is happening in our area of interest”

“As you are aware, when we apprehended the MV Ruen a few months back, we saved 17 crew members and apprehended 35 pirates, these drones that we currently have on lease, one of them was used extensively to monitor and track that vessel so that we could take action almost 2,000 km from our shore in consonance with our para-drop soldiers whowere on site,” he recalled.

The Chief Admiral, in his address at the commissioning of the ship at L&T shipyard at Kattupalli, Chennai, said that the launch of Samarthak symbolises the capacity and capability of private industry towards shipbuilding. “Every rupee spent in shipbuilding triggers circulation of ₹1.82. These multipurpose vessels will serve as critical enablers for enhancing the Indian Navy’s blue water capabilities by providing necessary capability and flexibility to our forward deployed units and demonstrating poise, presence and reach to deliver the desired effects at a place and time of our choosing,” he told a gathering of senior officials of Indian Navy and L&T.

According to Tripathi, of the 63 vessels under construction, the 17 Bravo ships are highly capable of 7,000-8,000 tonne frigates. “As per our long-term integrated perspective plan, we are supposed to have 24 frigates so these 7 new stealth frigates will add muscle to that capability... Indian Navy will be a full ‘Atmanirbhar’ force by 2047. I don’t think any further platforms from surface to sub-surface will be acquired from abroad. They will all be made in India.” he said.

At the Naval headquarters, we have commissioned two task forces under a two-star rank officer who are now going into the industry and learning about the kind of technology we can imbibe to plug the gaps which we have brought and we are successful to a certain extent. I am looking at the next few months with great hope, he pointed out.