On Tuesday, during talks between German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to improve bilateral defence cooperation with a clear focus on stronger industrial partnerships, Germany proposed building six modern submarines in India under the government’s strategic partnership (SP) model, to increase the Indian Navy’s underwater strength. The project named P-75 will be one of the largest Make in India programmes. One of the officials asking not to be named stated, “The Germans are very excited about their contribution to making submarines in the nation. The Indian side welcomes their participation wholeheartedly.”

According to a statement from the Indian defence ministry, both leaders reviewed the ongoing bilateral defence cooperation and looked into measures to improve it, most prominently in defence-industrial partnerships. The German defence minister’s visit to India is the country’s first in eight years. To be sure, the P-75I was not included in the official announcement. The estimated 43,000 crore project was approved by India two years ago with the goal of enhancing the navy’s capabilities and advancing the government’s top priority of defence indigenization.

According to the SP model, a strategic partner from India would work with a foreign OEM to establish production facilities in the nation and build significant defence platforms domestically.”ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) is offering to sell us six submarines, but the process is not yet complete. In that, (P-75I) race, I believe the German industry is doing well, Pistorius told German reporters who were with him. He began a four-day tour to India on Monday. 

The defence ministry granted permission for two Indian and five foreign shipbuilders, including the German firm TKMS, to participate in P-75I in January 2020. L&T and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited are the Indian strategic partners that have been given the go-ahead to work with the foreign OEMs. The French Naval Group, Russia’s Rubin Design Bureau, Spain’s Navantia, and South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Company were among the international yards that received approval for collaborations.