India's 6 Major Sub Related Activities - Work in Progress

India has set for itself the massive burden of conducting 6 major submarine activities. In no particular order of priority:

1.  Using a foreign design to build 6 Project-75(I) SSKs with AIP.

The DSME-3000 Batch-II (B2) with indigenously developed AIP, LIBs and 6 to 10 VLS appears to by the most modern and powerful SSK/SSB. In Indian service its 10+ vertically launched SLCMs or SLBMs could be nuclear armed. Making the DSME-3000 B2 a potent SSB with a second strike capability against Pakistan. This sub carries technical risks in that B2 is years from completion in South Korea (SK) and financial risks. SK has never sold such an advanced sub to anyone and might not sell it to India.

Germany would probably not permit export of its Type 212CD to India given the risk its stealth technology might be leaked to India’s (almost ally) Russia.

Less risky and less expensive than the DSME-3000 B2 would be Germany’s Type 214 with PEM AIP or SK’s Type 214 variant (KSS-II) (if Germany permits re-export of its PEM AIP. These would be more likely prospects, 

An advanced French Scorpene with emerging LIBs or 2^nd/3^rd generation French AIP (if export permitted) or DRDO AIP makes sense as there is already a Kalvari Scorpene assembly line in Mumbai. If India opted for higher cost and risk than a conventional Barracuda - perhaps tied in with French assistance for India's SSN project (see below) might make sense.

Other choices might be ruled out including:

-  the Russian Amur-class - no working AIP and the rest of the sub is under-developed. Maybe India would be happy with an advanced Kilo with Ukraine proven Kalibr SLCMs (better than Klubs). 

-  Spanish S-80 Plus - no AIP with a record at sea, Spain has never developed and exported a submarine class (all by itself)

-  Japan may be unwilling to export a sensitive specs submarine of Soryu or Taigei standard. However the likely lower specs subs (mainly) Japan has designed for Taiwan's "Indigenous" Defence Submarine may have potential.

2.  Developing an indigenous DRDO AIP

3.  Completing the 4 x Arihant-class small SSBNs

4.  Developing and building a full size S5 SSBN

5.  Developing and building 6 Project-75 Alpha SSNs

and

6.  Constructing INS Varsha the future base to protect all of India’s SSBNs and SSNs in tunnels.