Navy to Induct 18 Warships in 2026, Says Rajnath Singh

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh addressed the second edition of the Indian Navy's half-yearly Commanders' Conference 2026 at Nausena Bhawan, New Delhi, on 29 September 2026. He described India as the First Responder and Preferred Security Partner in the Indian Ocean Region, and called for monitoring and response mechanisms to be lifted to a new level as congestion, deception and grey-zone activity make the maritime domain harder to read.

A record year of inductions

The Raksha Mantri called 2026 a historic year for the force: 18 warships are planned for induction or commissioning, which would be the largest addition of ships in a single year in the Navy's history. Warships commissioned recently carry over 75 per cent indigenous content, and he said the warship-building ecosystem now meets global benchmarks, so India should look at exporting ships to friendly foreign countries and not merely meet its own needs.

Blue-water reach and the energy lifeline

Indian warships are present in the South China Sea, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean, which the minister offered as proof of blue-water capability. He singled out Operation Urja Suraksha, under which Indian-flagged merchant vessels, LPG tankers in particular, were seen safely through the Strait of Hormuz during the West Asia crisis. The stake is plain from the trade figures he cited: roughly 85 to 90 per cent of India's crude oil and about 50 per cent of its natural gas arrive by sea, so sea-lane security is tied directly to the economy, energy supply and defence preparedness.

International command and exercises

The minister congratulated the Navy on taking command of Combined Task Force-154 under the Combined Maritime Forces. During that tenure the Navy conducted Operation Southern Readiness at Kochi, which drew 276 personnel from 27 countries, 76 facilitators and subject-matter experts, and four international organisations. He also praised the deployment of INS Sudarshini for Lokayan-26, a voyage that carried India's maritime heritage to the diaspora across the United States, the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.

Women at sea and the larger vision

Under the Navy's All Ranks, All Roles approach, women officers now serve on frontline warships and aircraft, and women have taken part in navigational expeditions including Navika Sagar Parikrama. Calling the Navy a strategic anchor of the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, Rajnath Singh closed with the line that if the seas are secure India will be secure, and a secure India strengthens the resolve for a developed nation. The three-day apex conference, which runs to 1 October 2026, reviews operational preparedness, maritime security and future capability; the Chief of Defence Staff and the Chief of the Army Staff also took part.