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Named Achal, meaning “firm” or “steadfast”, the vessel has been designed to undertake a broad range of operational duties, including coastal and offshore surveillance, maritime interdiction, search and rescue missions, anti-smuggling operations, and marine pollution response. Officials said the ship will significantly enhance the operational readiness of the Indian Coast Guard across India’s maritime zones.
Lt Gen Subramani is a highly decorated officer with more than four decades of service in the Indian Army. He was commissioned into the Garhwal Rifles in December 1985 and has held a wide range of command, staff and instructional appointments. His career includes experience in counter-insurgency operations, high-altitude formations and key operational commands along India’s Western and Northern fronts.
According to Naval News, the proposed purchases are linked to India’s earlier US$500 million defence line of credit for Vietnam. Of this, projects worth around US$300 million have already been identified, including 14 high-speed patrol boats and three to four offshore patrol vessels, depending on final tender costs. The remaining US$200 million may be used for upgrading Vietnam Navy ships and procuring submarine batteries.
TARA is a modular range-extension kit, meaning it can be fitted to existing unguided warheads to improve their accuracy and effectiveness. In simple terms, it gives a conventional weapon a guided glide capability, allowing it to hit ground-based targets with far greater precision than a standard free-fall bomb. This is significant because it allows the armed forces to upgrade existing low-cost warheads into smarter, more accurate strike weapons without depending entirely on expensive imported precision munitions.
The Indian delegation was led by Joint Secretary Amitabh Prasad, while the Australian side was headed by Bernard Philip, First Assistant Secretary, International Policy. The talks focused on strengthening military-to-military engagement, maritime cooperation, defence industry collaboration, training exchanges and interoperability across domains.
Fleet Support Ships are not frontline combatants in the traditional sense, but they are critical to blue-water naval power. A navy can operate far from its home ports only if its warships can be refuelled, resupplied and sustained at sea. The new FSS vessels will carry fuel, water, ammunition and stores, allowing Indian naval task forces to remain deployed for longer periods without needing to return frequently to harbour.
Speaking at the North Tech Symposium 2026 in Prayagraj, Dr. Singh said the transformation has been driven by indigenous innovation, advanced technology adoption, private sector participation and a larger policy push toward self-reliance. The defence sector, once heavily dependent on imports, is now being positioned as a manufacturing and export pillar under the broader Atmanirbhar Bharat framework.
The top ten military spenders in 2025 were the United States, China, Russia, Germany, India, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Saudi Arabia, France and Japan. SIPRI data shows that the top ten alone accounted for 72 percent of global military expenditure, underlining how defence spending remains heavily concentrated among a small group of major powers.
The work covered hydrodynamic performance assessment and model testing, a critical phase in warship development where the ship’s hull behaviour is studied before full-scale construction and operational deployment. According to DRDO, the testing demonstrated capabilities in hull hydrodynamics, computational fluid dynamics simulations and experimental model trials.
The new complex is designed to improve the Coast Guard’s operational efficiency, administrative coordination and response capability in the region. According to the Ministry of Defence, the project reflects the broader vision of building a “Modern Force, Modern Infrastructure,” with upgraded facilities to support the growing maritime security requirements along India’s eastern coastline.
