Indian Navy's third next-generation offshore patrol warship, Shreyas, is launched in Kolkata

India's navy put a third next-generation offshore patrol warship into the water on 10 October 2026, when Yard 3040, named Shreyas, was launched at the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) yard in Kolkata, the Ministry of Defence said. Reyman Kochhar performed the launch in the presence of her husband, Vice Admiral Ajay Kochhar, the Vice Chief of the Naval Staff, who attended as chief guest.

Shreyas is the third of four Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessels (NGOPVs) that the state-owned shipyard is building for the navy. It follows Shruti, launched on 11 August, and the lead ship Sanghmitra, launched on 20 May, giving GRSE three launches in less than five months, GRSE said in a statement reported by the Press Trust of India. One ship of its four-vessel order is still to be launched.

Bigger patrol ships for a wider set of missions

According to GRSE, the new class is significantly larger and more capable than the offshore patrol vessels it built earlier, with more endurance, firepower and flexibility. Each ship is about 113 metres long and 14.6 metres wide, displaces around 3,000 tonnes, can reach 23 knots and has a range of 8,500 nautical miles at a cruising speed of 14 knots.

The ministry said the indigenously designed and built ships will add to the navy's existing offshore patrol fleet for maritime surveillance, search and rescue, protection of offshore assets, disaster relief and anti-piracy work. GRSE listed a broader set of roles, including maritime interdiction, boarding and search of suspect vessels, mine warfare, special operations, counter-infiltration patrols and contingency operations beyond Indian waters, as well as hospital, signals intelligence and fleet maintenance support.

Two shipyards, 11 ships

The NGOPVs are being built at the same time at Goa Shipyard and at GRSE, the ministry said, with the four Kolkata hulls forming part of the navy's 11-ship programme. The ministry presented the launch as another step in the navy's drive for domestic shipbuilding under the government's self-reliance and Make in India policies. The name Shreyas comes from Sanskrit and is glossed as best, most excellent or auspicious.

At the ceremony Kochhar praised the yard's pace of work and pointed to the continuing crises in West Asia and the Red Sea, which have disrupted commercial shipping and critical maritime infrastructure, Indian Masterminds reported. He said India, with a long coastline, a large exclusive economic zone and heavy economic and energy dependence on the sea, needs a credible and persistent naval presence, and that the new ships would add endurance and operational flexibility.

GRSE says it is currently building nine warships for the navy: a Project 17A guided-missile frigate, four anti-submarine warfare shallow water craft and the four NGOPVs. It is also building 32 other vessels, 13 of them for export, and is in advanced talks on a contract for five Next Generation Corvettes. Chairman and managing director Commodore PR Hari, a retired naval officer, said the yard had become a vibrant shipbuilder with a strong execution record, reflected in its run of launches and deliveries, and the company says it has delivered 118 warships to the Indian Navy, the Indian Coast Guard and foreign navies.