Underwater capability of Indian Navy will get a shot in the arm with the in-principle decision of Ministry of Defence to place construction of two Strategic Operating Vessels (SOVs) on Hindustan Shipyard Limited.

The Request for Proposal (RoP) will be notified in a couple of months. Building two SOVs, also known as midget submarines each costing an estimated amount of Rs.3,000 crore will be a prestigious project. “We are expecting to ground work on the project by completing all the procedures by the year-end and deliver it in three years,” HSL Chairman and Managing Director Rear Admiral N.K. Mishra told The Hindu on Sunday, declining to elaborate further.