Indo-Pacific — 2026-07-28

India Targets 200-Ship Navy Within Decade to Counter China and Pakistan Naval Expansion

BLUFIndia will likely field a 200-ship navy by 2036, but chronic submarine procurement delays risk delivering a fleet structurally mismatched against China's undersea advantage.

India's navy currently operates roughly 150 ships and submarines, with about 135 counted as frontline combatants and close to 50 additional hulls under construction, according to Marine Insight 1. The service commissioned the stealth frigate INS Mahendragiri, the sixth Project 17A vessel built by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, and the anti-submarine craft INS Malvan, built by Cochin Shipyard, within an eleven-day span this month 12. India's Defence Acquisition Council has separately cleared 74 additional warships, comprising 65 surface vessels and nine submarines, worth Rs 2.35 lakh crore 1. The Pentagon's latest assessment counts more than 370 ships and submarines in China's navy, the largest fleet by hull count, while Pakistan commissioned the first of eight Chinese-built Hangor-class attack submarines at Sanya on April 30 12.

Analysis
India's fleet is likely to reach 200 ships by 2036 on a commissioning tempo of roughly one indigenous warship every 40 days, backed by a Rs 2.35 lakh crore pipeline of 65 surface vessels and nine submarines. Surface production is on track, but submarines remain the binding constraint: only six Scorpène boats are in service against an earlier 24-by-2030 target, and Project 75(I) has yet to reach contract, yielding moderate confidence that the composition, not just the count, could still slip. Sourcing traces to a single narrow cluster of Ministry of Defence announcements and ANI/PIB wire material, with no independent corroboration of the 200-ship target or acquisition figures. The dual commissionings may reflect long-scheduled program milestones rather than an accelerated response to Beijing and Islamabad, with the figure serving as messaging. If the target holds, Quad planners can shift Indian Ocean burden-sharing toward New Delhi; persistent submarine shortfalls leave allied undersea coverage requirements unchanged regardless of surface growth.

2 sources

India Races Towards A 200-Ship Fleet By 2035 To Counter China And Pakistan - Marine Insight
India aims for a 200-ship navy to counter China and Pakistan - South China Morning Post