As the lead ship of her class, Godavari was laid down on 3 November 1978 by the Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Jal Cursetji, and was launched on 15 May 1980.

[5] The ship also visited New York harbour in July 1986 on the occasion of the bicentennial celebrations of the Statue of Liberty.

In 1988, following an attempted coup d'état against Maldivian President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom by Sri Lankan mercenaries, India launched Operation Cactus to restore the democratically elected government.

After Indian paratroopers restored the presidency, the mercenaries captured Maldivian hostages on board a freighter and fled towards Sri Lanka.

[6] A senior naval official said she would first be stripped of her weaponry and any salvageable fittings, and then most likely be sunk as a target ship.