Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday lauded the Indian Navy at the commissioning of the two advanced stealth frigates — INS Udaygiri and INS Himgiri — at the Eastern Naval Command in Visakhapatnam.

Indirectly referring to the US, he said there’s a country that has F-35 (fifth-generation fighter jet) flying in the air, while the Indian Navy has made a “floating F-35 warship”.

“Today, you have launched the indigenous F-35 warship. One nation has a flying F-35 and you have built a floating F-35, that too Made in India,” Rajnath Singh said at the event, according to

The two warships, part of the Indian Navy’s state-of-the-art Project 17A, mark the first time that frontline surface combatants built at two different shipyards have been commissioned simultaneously.

While Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders in Mumbai built INS Udaygiri, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers in Kolkata built the INS Himgiri.

Lauding the two new frigates, Rajnath Singh said the commissioning of INS Udaygiri and INS Himgiri will significantly enhance the Indian Navy’s strength, reach and resilience.

“[It] is a dream come true towards Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India). I can say with confidence that both these warships will prove to be a milestone in the country’s security,” he said, according to reporter