Abhay-class

The Abhay class is a series of four corvettes built for the Indian Navy at the Volodarski shipyard in the Soviet Union. Based on the Project 1241 PE design, the class consists of customized variants of the Soviet Pauk-class corvette. These vessels succeeded the Durg class and were named after former seaward defence boats.

Designated for coastal patrol and anti-submarine warfare, the Abhay class is a modification of the Pauk II design. The ships are longer and feature larger torpedo tubes and updated electronics compared to the Pauk I class. Onboard sensors include air and surface search radar, navigation radar, and fire-control radar. For anti-submarine operations, the vessels utilize a variable depth sonar and were later upgraded with the Abhay integrated sonar system developed by the Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory.

The ships were assigned to the 23 Patrol Vessel Squadron of the Indian Navy. The lead ship, INS Abhay, entered service in March 1989, followed by INS Ajay, INS Akshay, and INS Agray through January 1991.

In 2004, INS Agray sustained damage when an anti-submarine rocket exploded on the side of the vessel during a misfire. Following this event, the ship was converted into a patrol vessel and served as a trials ship for electronic warfare systems.

The Indian Navy began retiring the class in 2017 with the decommissioning of INS Agray. INS Akshay and INS Ajay were decommissioned in June and September 2022, respectively. The final vessel of the class, INS Abhay, was decommissioned on October 6, 2025, during a ceremony at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai. The class is replaced by the Arnala and Mahe subclasses of Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft.