The Indian Navy is set to commission its latest stealth missile frigate, Tamal, at the Yantar Shipyard in Kaliningrad, Russia, by the end of June, HT reported. The warship is expected to arrive on India’s west coast by September and will be deployed with the Mumbai-based Western Fleet, bolstering India's maritime presence in the Indian Ocean region.
Tamal is the second of four advanced stealth frigates being acquired from Russia under a $2.5-billion bilateral agreement. The contract includes two ships built at the Russian shipyard and two more being constructed at Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) under a technology transfer arrangement, HT reported.
The first frigate under this program, INS Tushil, was commissioned into the Navy in December last year, also at the Yantar Shipyard. It arrived in India in February and was inducted in a ceremony attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who called it a “proud testament” to India’s rising naval capabilities and a “milestone” in India-Russia defence cooperation.
Tushil and Tamal are upgraded Krivak III-class frigates, part of Russia’s Project 1135.6. India already operates six ships of this class—three Talwar-class frigates built at St. Petersburg’s Baltic Shipyard and three Teg-class frigates from the Yantar Shipyard.
The new frigates feature around 26% indigenous content, significantly more than their predecessors. This includes components and systems from 33 Indian firms, such as Bharat Electronics Limited, BrahMos Aerospace (an India-Russia joint venture), and Nova Integrated Systems, a Tata Advanced Systems subsidiary.
Tamal comes equipped with state-of-the-art weaponry, including BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, upgraded Shtil surface-to-air missiles, medium-range guns, optically controlled close-range weapon systems, torpedoes, and anti-submarine rockets—making it a formidable platform in the Navy’s arsenal.
The induction of Tamal marks another step forward in India’s long-standing defence partnership with Russia and reinforces its strategy to expand naval power in a region of growing strategic significance.
