India to Build $5 Billion Aircraft Carrier to Counter China's Naval Presence

The new carrier, equipped with French-made Rafale jets, is part of India's ongoing military modernization and expansion efforts.

India is set to build a second indigenous aircraft carrier in a $5 billion purchase to counter China's growing naval presence in the region.
The new carrier will hold at least 28 fighter jets and helicopters and displace 45,000 tons of water, the same as India's first home-made carrier, the INS Vikrant.
The carrier will be equipped with French-made Rafale jets, reflecting India's ongoing military modernization and partial phasing out of older Soviet- and Russia-made hardware.
India's navy is planning to boost its hull count to 175 ships in the near future, with more than 60 vessels currently at various stages of construction.
India has also upgraded the runway facilities at the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, allowing aircraft to land at night, in a bid to keep a tighter watch over the narrow water straits of Malacca, Sunda and Lombok in the southern Indian Ocean.