Indian MoD press release
During the ceremony, the ship was formally named as ‘Tushil’ by Smt Datla Vidya Varma. Tushil is a Sanskrit word meaning Protector Shield.
Based on an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) between the Government of Republic of India and Government of Russian Federation for construction of two ships of Project 1135.6 ships in Russia and two ships in India at M/s Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL), the contract for construction of two ships was signed between India and Russia in Oct 18.
The construction of these ships is based on Indian Navy’s specific requirements to meet the entire spectrum of naval warfare in all three dimensions of Air, Surface and Sub-surface. The ships with a potent combination of state-of-art Indian and Russian Weapons and Sensors are equipped to operate in Littoral and Blue waters, both as a single unit and as consort in a naval task force. They feature “stealth technology” in terms of low radar and under water noise signatures. These ships are being equipped with major Indian supplied equipment such as Surface to Surface Missiles, Sonar system, Surface Surveillance Radar, Communication Suite and ASW system along with Russian Surface to Air Missiles and gun mounts.
Mr Ilya Samarin, Director General, Yantar Shipyard, Kaliningrad, in his address dwelt upon the challenges faced by the Shipyard in executing the complex shipbuilding project. Despite challenges posed by the ongoing pandemic, production of the ships was continued by utilisation of innovative solutions. He thanked the Indian Government for their unstinted support and reiterated shipyard’s commitment to deliver the ships as per contractual timelines. Shri D Bala Venkatesh Varma, Ambassador of India (Moscow), highlighted the long standing tradition of Military Technical Cooperation between India and Russia. He acknowledged the efforts put in by the Yantar Shipyard to ensure that the ship was launched as per contractual timelines overcoming the challenges imposed by COVID-19.
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Naval News comments:
On November 20, 2018, Rosoboronexport signed a contract with Goa Shipyard Limited (GSL) worth about $ 500 million to assist in the construction of two Russian Project 11356 frigates at GSL shipyard for the Indian Navy, with the transfer of licenses and technologies by the Russian side. This contract was in addition to the $ 1.2 billion contract signed in October 2018 by Rosoboronexport for the construction of two Project 11356 frigates in Russia at the Yantar shipyard in Kaliningrad for the Indian fleet.
The steel cutting of the first frigate for India took place at GSL in September 2020. Keel laying for the second ship took place in June this year. The two frigate built in Russia (Yantar Shipyard) are to be handed over to the Indian fleet in 2022 and 2023. These two ships are in fact unfinished frigates originally intended for the Russian Navy – Admiral Butakov (serial number 01360) and Admiral Istomin (serial number 01361). The ships will now be known as Tushil and Tamala.
The Government of India signed a contract with GSL on January 25, 2019 for the construction of the next two frigates of Project 11356. The ships, which are being built with Russian assistance and with partial transfer of technology from Russia, are planned to be transferred to the Indian Navy, in June 2026 and December 2026, respectively.
About Project 1135.6 frigates
The Indian Navy already operates six Talwar-class frigates. Also as the Project 1135.6, it is a class of guided-missile frigates designed and built by Russia. A modification of the Krivak III-class frigates, the Project 1135.6 Talwar-class is fitted with a number of « Make in India » sub-systems.
The two follow-on Project 1135.6 frigates are to integrate the BrahMos cruise missile system in place of the 3M-54E Klub-N anti-ship missile and “advanced sensors”.
The Project 1135.6 warships are capable of reaching top speeds of 30 knots, have an endurance of around 30 days. They have a length of 124.8 meters and a displacement of about 4,000 tons. They are fitted with a flight deck to carry a helicopter for anti-submarine warfare missions.
The new frigates will deeply bolster Indian Navy capabilities in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) as the service is dealing with a shortage of 10 frigates out of the 24 that it needs.
