India on Thursday launched the second French Scorpene-class submarine Khanderi at Mumbai’s Mazgaon Dock. It can carry torpedoes and anti-ship missiles to target enemy submarines from surface or underwater during war. It can also be used for intelligence gathering, mine laying and surveillance.

The submarine will undergo several trials till December before it is commissioned into the Indian Navy. It was built by the Mazgaon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd in a major boost to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ campaign. “I am confident that the day is not too far where MDL [Mazgaon Dock Limited] will build submarines for other nations as well,” said Union Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre.

This submarine is the second of the six submarines being built by the ministry to modernise the navy. The first one, Kalvari, was launched in April 2015. It will be inducted later this year. The Indian Navy has 13 diesel-electric submarines at the moment, and half of them are not operational. The ministry has initiated a plan to build 24 submarines, both nuclear and conventional, over the next 30 years, reported NDTV.