• Indian Navy’s warship ‘Mahendragiri’, developed by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), was launched in Mumbai on September 1.

• It was launched by Sudesh Dhankhar, wife of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar.

• Named after a mountain peak in the Eastern Ghats of Odisha, this is the last of the seven warships built under ‘Project 17 Alpha’ (P17A) for the Navy.

Project 17A frigates

• Project 17A frigates are a follow-on class of the P17 (Shivalik Class) frigates with improved stealth features, advanced weapons and sensors and platform management systems.

• The Navy had placed orders for seven stealth frigates, four of which are being developed by Mazagon Dock Ltd (MDL) and three by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE).

• P17A ships have been designed in-house by Navy’s Warship Design Bureau. Around 75 per cent of the orders for equipment and system of P17A ships are being placed on indigenous firms.

• The first ship of Project 17A, ‘Nilgiri’ built by MDL, was launched on September 28, 2019. 

• ‘Himgiri’, the first of the three Project 17A ships being built at Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited (GRSE), Kolkata was on December 14, 2020.

• The third ship ‘Udaygiri’ under the project was launched on May 17 this year. It is expected to start sea trials during the second half of 2024. 

• ‘Dunagiri’, the fourth ship of P17A frigates, was launched in July this year. It was named after a mountain range in Uttarakhand.

• Taragiri, named after a hill range in the Himalayas located at Garhwal, was the fifth ship of Project 17A frigates. It was launched in September 2022.

• Vindhyagiri, named after the mountain range in Karnataka, was the sixth ship of Project 17A frigates. It was launched in August.

• Mahendragiri is the last of the seven warships under Project 17A.

• The state-of-the-art ship will be fitted with the latest gadgets and undergo extensive trials before being handed over to the Indian Navy for commissioning into service.

• P17A ships are guided missile frigates, each of which is 149 metres long, with the displacement of approximately 6,670 tonnes and a speed of 28 knots. 

• These are capable of neutralising threats in all three dimensions of air, surface and sub-surface.

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