Project 18 and Indian destroyer force structure

If the planned IAC-3 carrier Vishal enters service, it would add another task group to a fleet that also wants independent surface action groups. The proposal discussed calls for ten to twelve Project 18 destroyers. One expectation is that they would eventually replace Rajput, Delhi, and Kolkata, while Visakhapatnam would remain until a later destroyer generation. Supporting eastern and western commands, carrier escorts, and independent surface groups suggests a possible requirement closer to eighteen destroyers. That figure is a judgment about the missions the fleet needs to sustain, rather than a quoted official requirement. Future numbers depend on those commitments as well as the replacement of ageing ships.