New Delhi

India is set to bolster the sea-based arm of its nuclear triad with the commissioning of its third home-built nuclear-powered submarine, ‘Aridaman’, Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi announced on Tuesday. He said the submarine is in the final trial phase and will join the fleet shortly, marking another milestone in the country’s strategic deterrence programme.

Speaking at his annual press conference ahead of Navy Day, Admiral Tripathi also indicated that the long-pending procurement of six stealth submarines under Project 75-India (P75-I) is close to being finalised. In addition, he confirmed that the Navy will receive the first four of the 26 Rafale-M fighter jets in 2028, following India’s ₹64,000-crore agreement with France earlier this year.

On operational developments, the Navy Chief emphasised the decisive maritime posture adopted during Operation Sindoor, launched after hostilities erupted with Pakistan. Without providing operational specifics, he noted that the mission remains underway. “Our rapid response and the deployment of the carrier battle group forced the Pakistan Navy to stay close to their ports or along the Makran coast,” he said.

According to Admiral Tripathi, the fallout of the operation has resulted in major financial pressure on Pakistan, as merchant vessels have been avoiding the country’s ports, driving up shipping insurance costs.

Admiral Tripathi further highlighted that the Indian Navy has maintained a high state of readiness in the Western Arabian Sea and other critical maritime zones for the past seven to eight months as tensions persisted.

Responding to a question on India’s nuclear submarine programme, the Navy Chief underscored that ‘INS Aridaman’ will soon enter service, following INS Arihant and INS Arighat — the other two submarines built under the highly confidential SSBN (nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine) initiative. India’s SSBN fleet is regarded as the backbone of its sea-based nuclear deterrence.

India currently possesses nuclear delivery capabilities from land and air platforms, and the expansion of its underwater nuclear strength is aimed at enhancing survivability in the event of conflict.

INS Arihant, the first indigenous nuclear submarine, was launched in 2009 and quietly commissioned in 2016. With the SSBN programme, India has joined a small group of nations with nuclear-powered submarines — which include the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France and China.

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Despite its advanced nuclear capability, India continues to advocate strongly for universal nuclear disarmament. The country has maintained the doctrine of “credible minimum deterrence” and a “no-first-use” policy since its Pokhran-II nuclear tests in 1998, later formalised in its 2003 nuclear doctrine.