Visakhapatnam, Jul 18 (PTI) Indian Navy Ship (INS) Nistar, the first indigenously designed and constructed Diving Support Vessel, was commissioned here on Friday, marking a major maritime achievement.
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 only select Navies possess across the globe.
INS Nistar is installed with state-of-the-art diving equipment such as remotely operated vehicles, a self-propelled hyperbaric lifeboat, and diving compression chambers.
"It can undertake diving and salvage operations up to 300m depth," said an official press release.
Nistar would also serve as the 'Mother Ship' for a deep submergence rescue vessel to rescue and evacuate personnel from a dived submarine in distress well below the surface.
Chief of Naval Staff (CNS) Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi said that the first version of Nistar was launched on March 29, 1971, and it played a crucial role during the Indo-Pakistan war, identifying Pakistan's sunken submarine Gazi outside Visakhapatnam harbour and Eastern operations.
The new Nistar will carry forward its legacy with advanced saturation dive systems and the capability to rescue deep submergence rescue vessels, including submarines, he added.
"Old ships never die, they always return in upgraded form," said Tripathi, during the commissioning ceremony here.
Nistar is both technologically and operationally significant, enhancing India's and regional partners' submarine rescue capabilities, with India set to emerge as a preferred partner in submarine rescue globally, said the CNS.
Tripathi said that only a few navies worldwide have such capabilities, and fewer nations develop them indigenously, with Nistar boosting India's maritime-based industry.
Participating in the event, Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth said the Indian Navy has a history of glorious victories and noted that Nistar will enhance the country's global identity, proving that the Indian Navy stands as an equal among world powers.
He highlighted that the Nistar that was decommissioned in 1989 was weighing 800 tonnes, is now revived with a weight of 10,500 tonnes, and is 120 meters long, reflecting Viksit Bharat's (Developed India) technological transformation.
The MoS said that at present, all of the 57 new warships in the pipeline are being constructed indigenously.
'India shifted from importer to exporter', exporting defence goods worth Rs 23,622 crores and targeting Rs 50,000 crores, said the union minister.
With participation from 120 MSMEs and over 80 percent indigenous content, Nistar showcases India's capability to build complex ships meeting international standards.
Further, Seth reiterated that India is poised to become the third-largest economy after surpassing Germany.