By A Correspondent
Mumbai: The Indian Navy on December 19, 2025, formally decommissioned INS Sindhughosh, the lead boat of her class, marking a significant milestone in the service’s ongoing transition from legacy underwater platforms to a new generation of submarines aimed at sustaining undersea deterrence in an increasingly contested Indian Ocean.
The submarine was paid off at sunset at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai, ending more than four decades of frontline service in the Navy’s conventional submarine arm.
The ceremony was presided over by Western Naval Command Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Vice Admiral Krishnan Swaminathan, and attended by serving and retired flag officers, submariners, veterans, and members of the original commissioning crew. Lieutenant Commander Rajat Sharma commanded the submarine during her final phase of service.
Commissioned on April 30, 1986, INS Sindhughosh entered service at a time when India was significantly expanding and modernising its underwater combat capabilities.
Her induction strengthened the Indian Navy’s ability to conduct sea-denial, surveillance and deterrence missions, particularly as maritime competition in the Indian Ocean region intensified.
Over nearly 40 years, the submarine undertook numerous operational patrols, participated in multinational exercises and carried out multiple weapon firings, remaining a frontline asset well into her later years.
As the lead boat of her class, INS Sindhughosh played a central role in shaping operational doctrines, maintenance practices and training standards for conventional submarines. Generations of submariners qualified aboard her, making the vessel an institutional cornerstone of India’s undersea warfare community.
Operating under the motto “Vision, Vigour, Values,” the submarine symbolised the demanding ethos of underwater service. Capt K R Ajrekar (Retd), her second Commanding Officer, attended the ceremony as the Guest of Honour, alongside Admiral V S Shekhawat (Retd), former Chiefs of Naval Staff, and senior veterans.
The decommissioning comes amid continuing pressure on the Indian Navy’s submarine force levels. The Navy currently operates a mix of older Sindhughosh- and Shishumar-class submarines alongside newer Scorpene-class boats, with overall numbers below the long-stated requirement of around two dozen conventional submarines.
INS Sindhughosh’s retirement underlines the urgency of fleet renewal. India is pursuing a two-track approach: completing the Scorpene programme while advancing future indigenous submarine construction plans, including Project-75(I) and longer-term indigenous design efforts.
As older boats are phased out, timely induction of new platforms will be critical to maintaining undersea surveillance, deterrence, and combat readiness.
With her decommissioning, INS Sindhughosh leaves behind a legacy closely tied to the maturation of India’s conventional submarine arm, defined not just by missions and deployments, but by the generations of submariners she trained over four decades of service.
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