New Scorpene class submarines for the Navy: Why they are a crucial buy

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CategoryDefence

Last Updated17/07/2023

The Defence Acquisition Council cleared proposals to buy three additional Scorpene submarines
These submarines will be procured under Buy (Indian) category and will be built by the Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) in Mumbai.

The MDL is building six Scorpene class submarines under the Project-75
Of these, five have already been commissioned and the last one will likely be commissioned early next year.
The fifth submarine under this project, INS Vagir, was commissioned in January this year.
The others INS Kalvari, INS Khanderi, INS Karanj and INS Vela were commissioned between 2017 and 2021.
Recently, the sixth submarine INS Vagsheer began her sea trials.

The Scorpene submarines are conventional attack subs i.e. they are designed to target and sink adversary naval vessels.
Capable of launching a large array of torpedoes and missiles, they are also equipped with a range of surveillance and intelligence-gathering mechanisms.
Scorpene class submarines use diesel electric propulsion systems, with an endurance of approximately 50 days.
- The ability to operate independently without refuelling
This sort of propulsion system alternates between using diesel (for functioning on the surface) and electric (for functioning underwater).
However, these electric batteries need to be recharged by the diesel engine after prolonged submersion, meaning that the submarine has to periodically surface to continue operating.

Becuse of delayed deliveries of submarines under Project 75 and to bolster India’s dwindling submarine fleet.
To carry out its full spectrum of operations the Navy needs at least 18 submarines.
- Currently, the Navy has 16 conventional submarines in service
- Moreover, at any given time, around 30 per cent of the submarines are under refit, thus further bringing down the strength of operational submarines.
- Even the latest Kalvari-class submarines are scheduled to go for upcoming refits very soon.
As per the Defence Ministry, the procurement of additional submarines, with higher indigenous content, will help in maintaining required force level and operational readiness of the Navy
- It will also create significant employment opportunities in the domestic sector.
- It will also help the MDL in further enhancing its capability and expertise in submarine construction

Nuclear submarines are coveted due to their theoretically unlimited endurance
- A nuclear reactor on a submarine has an operational life of up to 30 years.
As they are not propelled by batteries, these submarines only need to come to the surface for replenishing supplies for the crew.
They are also able to move much faster than conventional submarines.
Currently, India has 2 nuclear-powered submarines (SSBMs) of the Arihant class in service
However, nuclear submarines are expensive and require a significant amount of specialised experience to operate.