INS Malvan commissioned: How the submarine-hunter Mahe-class craft shields India's coast

📌 Summary:

• The Indian Navy commissioned INS Malvan on Wednesday at Karwar, Karnataka — its second Mahe-class Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC)
• ASW-SWCs are specialised warships for anti-submarine and patrolling operations in the littoral (shallow near-shore) zone that larger surface combatants cannot effectively cover
• INS Malvan is the 2nd of 8 Mahe-class vessels built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd, and the 6th of 16 ASW-SWCs being built by CSL and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata; first ship INS Mahe was commissioned in Nov last year
• Over 80% of components are indigenous; named after Malvan (Maharashtra), linked to Chhatrapati Shivaji's maritime legacy; crest bears the "Bagh Nakha" (tiger claw) and the motto "Silent Claws"
• Capability edge: low draught, advanced sonar and high manoeuvrability let them hunt stealthy diesel-electric submarines and protect harbours, sea lanes, offshore energy installations and naval bases
• Strategic value: 16 vessels will form a dedicated anti-submarine screen along the coast, freeing larger warships for blue-water operations and strengthening India's maritime security in the Indian Ocean Region
• Integrated with coastal radar, underwater sensors and maritime patrol aircraft for layered, indigenous ASW capability
• Powered by diesel engine-waterjet propulsion — the largest such Indian Navy warships

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS3 Internal Security — maritime/coastal security, sea-lane protection and indigenisation of defence; complements the Indian Ocean Region strategy.

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Mahe-class ASW-SWCs are built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE)
• 16 ASW-SWCs planned; first was INS Mahe (Nov 2025); INS Malvan is the second Mahe-class ship
• "Bagh Nakha" (tiger claw) is linked to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
• The ships are optimised for the littoral zone and use diesel engine-waterjet propulsion

🔑 Key Term: Littoral zone — the shallow coastal maritime area near the shore, strategically and economically critical and central to coastal defence and ASW operations.