India intends to build three SSBN and six SSN

18.03.2010
Coming 10-year leasing of Russian SSN K-152 Nerpa to Indian Navy could not conform to India's long-term plans to create sea nuclear deterrence force; the reason is international nonproliferation treaty as for missiles with the range over 300 km and, therefore, Nerpa could not be armed with long-range strategic missiles.

This submarine will be used for protection of the first Indian-made SSBN INS Arihant which will be presumably commissioned in 2011-2012. Armed with torpedoes and Club-S cruise missiles with the range below 300 km, Nerpa would be a kind of silent killer chasing enemy's subs and ships.

In the longer term India intends to construct three nuclear-powered ballistic missile subs and six nuclear-powered attack subs. In contrast to diesel electric submarines which frequently need to surface for battery recharging and oxygen replenishment, nuclear-powered subs are capable to stay underwater almost forever. Thus, a SSBN is considered to be the most hard-detectable nuclear missile carrier.

At present, Indian Navy has only 16 obsolete diesel subs while US Navy has 71 nuclear-powered submarines (including 14 SSBNs) and China possesses 62 subs (10 of them are nuclear including three SSBNs).

Source: Military Parity, photo: SSBN INS Arihant (militaryparitet.com)