List of frigates of the Indian Navy

This is a list of frigates of the Indian Navy, grouped by class, and ordered by pennant numbers within the class.

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries. Generally, frigates are considered as the vessels that are intermediate between corvettes and destroyers.

Frigates have had a significant role in the naval history of India. Though the Maratha Navy, the naval wing of the armed forces of Maratha Empire, used Grabs and Gallivats to portray their naval power, the concept frigates or sloops was introduced by the British. The Royal Indian Navy was expanded significantly during the Second World War. , and  of the  which served in World War II were some of the early sloops commissioned into the Royal Indian Navy during the 1920s.

In later stages, sloops from the, , ,  and  were inducted. The sloops and  of Black Swan class took part in Operation Husky, the Allied invasion of Sicily. The frigates HMIS Dhanush, HMIS Shamsher of the were the first of frigates inducted into the Royal Indian Navy in 1945, which were later transferred to Pakistan during partition. Later, several frigates from the River class were inducted.

In the post war period, the Indian Navy operated frigates from the, , , and. The Nilgiri class frigates were the first major warships to be built in India in association with Yarrow Shipbuilders of the United Kingdom. Currently, 14 guided missile frigates from four different classes – the, , , and  – are operated by the Indian Navy.

Commissioned ships
Ten frigates from four different classes are currently in active service with the Indian Navy. The is the heaviest of the frigate classes presently serving with the Indian Navy. INS Shivalik (F47), the lead ship of named after the Shivalik hills is the first stealth warship built by India. All the three ships from were built by Mazagon Dock Limited, Mumbai from 2000 to 2010. The Shivalik class were originally conceived as a successor to the Talwar-class frigates, the Shivalik-class frigates feature improved stealth features and land attacking capabilities. The Talwar class frigates are modified Krivak III class vessels, which were built by Russia for the Indian Navy. The Talwar class was preceded by the Brahmaputra class, which were built by the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Kolkata. Currently, three ships of this class are in service with the Indian Navy. Predecessors to the Brahmaputra class frigates were the s. Of the three ships of the Godavari class, the lead ship, INS Godavari (F20), was decommissioned in 2015, and the remaining two are still in service.

Decommissioned ships
Most of the decommissioned frigates or sloops of the Indian Navy originated from the United Kingdom. , and  of the  which served in World War II were some of the early sloops commissioned into the Royal Indian Navy during the 1920s. These ships were also the first ships to be decommissioned. In later stages, sloops from the, , ,  and  were inducted. The sloops  and  of the  and  of the  were transferred to Pakistan post-partition. HMIS Elphinstone of the and  of the  were lost in action during the Second World War. The other sloops were subsequently scrapped after their decommissioning.

The frigates HMIS Dhanush, HMIS Shamsher of the were the first of frigates inducted into the Royal Indian Navy in 1945, which were later transferred to Pakistan during partition. Later several frigates from the River class were inducted. Frigates from the, , , , , and had served with the Indian Navy. Of these, the Nilgiri-class frigates, commissioned between 1972 and 1981, were the first home-grown frigates in Indian service. The last of ship of the Nilgiri class, INS Taragiri (F41), was decommissioned in 2013. The two s in service are scheduled to be decommissioned in the coming years.

Future ships
The Project 17A-class frigate is a follow-on of the Project 17 for the Indian Navy. A total of seven ships will be built at Mazagon Dock and GRSE. The construction of the first ship is expected to start by early 2017 and is expected to be launched by 2020.

The is a variant of the Russian-built  currently in service with the Indian Navy. Six of this class were originally planned for service with the Russian Navy, with the engines to be supplied by the Ukrainian governmental firm Zorya-Mashproekt. The first batch of three frigates was supplied with Ukrainian engines; the first two vessels in this batch are currently in service with Russia, with the last to be commissioned in 2016. The 2014 Crimean crisis halted any further cooperation between the Russian and Ukrainian governments, leaving the second batch of ships without engines. In August 2016, Russia agreed to sell the remaining three frigates to India. India will likely be able to acquire Ukrainian-built engines on its own. As the frigates remain under construction, it is possible the hulls could be transported to India for their final fitting-out, including the installation of their engines.