Indian Navy Commissions Stealth Guided Missile Destroyer Mormugao

The Indian Navy on Sunday commissioned the stealth-guided missile destroyer Mormugao, the second of four Visakhapatnam-class destroyers.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that INS Mormugao exemplifies India's excellence in warship design and development at the commissioning ceremony in Mumbai.

According to Singh, the INS Mormugao is one of the most powerful indigenous warships and the most technologically advanced warship ever built.

The commissioning of the warship will strengthen India's maritime power as the Indian economy is among the top five in the world and will be among the top three in 2027, according to Singh. 

The Navy chief stated that the warship's commissioning on the eve of Goa Liberation Day is indicative of the significant advances made in warship design and building capability over the last decade.

The ceremony at the naval dockyard was attended by Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan and Goa Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai.

INS Mormugao is the second of four Visakhapatnam-class destroyers of ‘Project 15B’ designed in-house by the Indian Navy's Warship Design Bureau and built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited in Mumbai.

Mormugao, named after the historic port city of Goa, conducted its first sea trial on 19 December 2021, when Goa celebrated 60 years of independence from Portuguese rule. The INS Mormugao measures 163 metres in length and 17 metres in width. It can travel at a top speed of 30 knots (55kmph) and has a displacement of 7,400 tonnes.

The warship is outfitted with cutting-edge weapons and sensors, including surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles. It has a modern surveillance radar that feeds target data to the gunnery weapon systems on board.