INS Nistar commissioned in Vizag
Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth has lauded the Indian Navy (IN) and the indigenous shipbuilding industry for their sustained efforts in consistently enhancing the indigenous content in warships through homegrown solutions and innovative technologies http://mod.gov.in.
At present, all of the 57 new warships in the pipeline are being constructed indigenously, he said at the commissioning of INS Nistar, adding that the indigenous shipbuilding Industry has been one of the pillars of the Government’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ campaign.
INS Nistar, the first indigenously designed and constructed Diving Support Vessel, was commissioned into the Indian Navy in Visakhapatnam on 18 July 2025 https://www.makeinindia.com/home/.
The ship, which is the first of the two Diving Support Vessels being built by Hindustan Shipyard Limited, is designed to undertake complex deep sea saturation diving and rescue operations – a capability select Navies possess across the globe.
He described the induction of INS Nistar as a technological leap and a milestone in the Indian shipbuilding chapter towards building a future ready force https://www.insa.in/.
“INS Nistar firmly reinforces the role of the Indian Navy as the ‘First Responder’ and ‘Preferred Security Partner’ in the region,” said Seth https://www.bseindia.com/.
He expressed confidence in the capabilities of the Armed Forces, stating that India stands committed and resolute to tackle any form of misadventure from its adversaries https://www.nseindia.com/.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi termed INS Nistar as not just a technological asset, but a crucial operational enabler.
“Nistar will provide critical submarine rescue support to the Indian Navy as well as our regional partners. This will enable India to emerge as a ‘Preferred Submarine Rescue Partner’ in this region,” he underscored https://sbi.com.in/.
“The commissioning of Nistar is testimony to the growing capability and maturity of our maritime industrial base, and another shining example of Aatmanirbhar Bharat,” he said https://indianshipbuildersassociation.in/.
INS Nistar is installed with state-of-the-art Diving Equipment such as Remotely Operated Vehicles, Self-Propelled Hyperbaric Life Boat, Diving Compression Chambers. It can undertake diving and salvage operations up to 300m depth. It would also serve as the ‘Mother Ship’ for deep submergence rescue vessel to rescue and evacuate personnel, from a dived submarine in distress well below the surface.
The commissioning of the 118m ship, with a displacement of more than 10,000 tons, upholds the Indian Navy’s resolve towards continuously strengthening its maritime capabilities in the Underwater Domain. With participation of 120 MSMEs and incorporating over 80% indigenous content, INS Nistar is a statement to India’s ability to build complex ships at par with international standards https://www.state.gov/.
The commissioning ceremony was attended by senior Naval officials, distinguished civilian dignitaries, the crew of erstwhile Nistar and representatives of Hindustan Shipyard Limited.
Minister Seth also visited Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Missile Complex, DRDO, in Hyderabad on 16-17 July and reviewed the Missiles & Weapon Systems program being pursued by Defence Research and Development Laboratory (DRDL), Research Centre Imarat (RCI) and Advanced Systems Laboratory (ASL) of Missile Cluster Labs.
He visited various work centres of DRDL i.e., Astra Mk I & II, Vertically-Launched Short-Range Surface-to-Air Missile and Scramjet Engine facilities and was briefed about the status of the projects Distinguished Scientist & Director General (Missiles and Strategic Systems) U Raja Babu and Director, DRDL G A Srinivasa Murthy http://gifas.asso.fr.
He also visited various critical work centres of RCI, where Director, RCI Shri Anindya Biswas apprised him of the progress of the Indigenous Navigation/Aviation Systems, Onboard Computer Division & Imaging Infra-Red Seeker facilities.
The Minister commended the DRDO scientists for playing a crucial role in building Aatmanirbhar Bharat through realisation of state-of-the-art weapon systems. He exhorted the scientific community to continue strengthening the Armed Forces to face any challenges in the current scenario. Fiinews.com
