New Delhi: The Indian Navy will get delivery of the first of its six Scorpene submarines in 2015, three years behind schedule, the Rajya Sabha, or the upper house of Parliament, was informed Wednesday. In the original contract the first delivery was earmarked for 2012. 

'The first submarine (Scorpene) is now scheduled to be delivered in the second half of 2015. As per the contract, the first submarine was scheduled to be delivered in December 2012, and thereafter, one each every year till December 2017,' defence minister AK Antony said through a written reply.

The six Scorpenes, part of the 'Project 75' submarine construction programme, are under construction at the Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks Ltd (MDL) at a cost of $4 billion in collaboration with French firm DCNS.

'There has been a delay due to initial teething problems, absorption of technology, augmentation of MDL infrastructure and procurement of MDL Purchased Material (MPM),' Antony said.

Antony's reply was in response to a question on the delays in increasing India's underwater combat capabilities.

'This is a continuous process undertaken for the modernization of the armed forces to keep them in a state of readiness to meet any eventuality,' he said.

'Any gap in submarine capacity is being addressed by modernisation and up-gradation with the state-of-the-art weapons and sensors fitted on the existing submarines to enhance their combat-worthiness,' he added.

The defence minister also noted that the government had approved an upward revision in the cost of Project-75 on account of increase in the cost of MPM items, related sub-heads and additional MDL infrastructure.

Antony also said the government had already set in motion the process of constructing additional submarines under Project-75I (India).

India will this year issue a $11-billion global tender for building six more next-generation vessels under Project-75I (India), a follow-on to the six Scorpenes.

The navy issued the RFI for Project 75I (India) in September last year and some of the global firms that have responded to it are Russian Rosoboronexport, French DCNS/Armaris, German HDW and Spanish Navantia.

The Indian Navy currently operates 14 diesel-electric submarines. It only recently de-commissioned two ancient Soviet-era Foxtrot class submarines, which it used for training purposes.

Of the 14 submarines, 10 are Kilo class Soviet-origin vessels and the rest are HDW German-origin vessels.

India is expected to induct the 12 Project-75 and Project-75I (India) submarines over the next decade-and-a-half. The 12 vessels would now be inducted one after the other over 12 years beginning 2015.

The P-75 and P-75I projects are part of the 30-vessel submarine induction plan of the navy approved early in the last decade.

By 2015, the number of navy's submarines is likely to be just the half of the current 14 vessels as most of them are ageing and would be decommissioned.