Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) Ltd, a Navratna Defence Public Sector Undertaking under the Ministry of Defence, has received fresh work orders from the West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation Ltd. (WBTDCL) for the construction of two hybrid diesel-electric ferries and two sets of Bailey Bridges.
The formal work orders were handed over in the presence of Dr Shankar Ghosh, Minister-in-Charge, Department of Tourism, Government of West Bengal; Smt Purnima Chakraborty, Minister of State, Department of Tourism; and Cmde PR Hari, IN (Retd), Chairman and Managing Director, GRSE, along with senior officials from GRSE and WBTDCL.
The two ferries will each measure 24 metres in length and 8 metres in width, with a passenger capacity of 100 and a draft requirement of 1 metre. Designed for efficient and environmentally sustainable inland water transportation, the vessels will achieve speeds of up to 9 knots in hybrid diesel-electric mode and 7 knots in fully electric mode.
The ferries will feature advanced propulsion systems comprising batteries and diesel generators, aimed at reducing operational costs and carbon emissions while ensuring reliable performance on Indian inland waterways. The vessels will be classed by the Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) and are expected to provide enhanced passenger comfort through reduced noise and vibration.
In addition to the ferry orders, West Bengal has placed orders with GRSE for two sets of Standard Width Bailey Bridges of 70R Road Class. GRSE is a major player in modular bridge construction and has supplied more than 5,900 bridges to the Indian Army, Border Roads Organisation, state governments, central agencies and friendly foreign countries.
GRSE had earlier delivered Dheu, West Bengal’s next-generation zero-emission electric ferry, in 2025. With the latest contracts, GRSE is currently building 13 hybrid diesel-electric ferries for the Government of West Bengal.
The new orders further strengthen GRSE’s partnership with the West Bengal Government and underline the shipyard’s capabilities in indigenous shipbuilding and modular bridge construction. The projects are also expected to support sustainable mobility, improve connectivity in remote areas and advance the objectives of Aatmanirbhar Bharat through locally developed engineering solutions.