INS Sandhayak inducted into fleet on Navy Day

Kolkata, Dec 4: On the Navy Day, the largest survey vessel ever -- INS Sandhayak -- was inducted in the Indian Navy on Monday, officials said.

The INS Sandhayak has been built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) Ltd in India. The GRSE officials said that INS Sandhayak was completed in record time in less than two years.

INS Sandhayak’s induction in the fleet on Monday is of particular significance as Indian Navy Day is celebrated on December 4 every year. The GRSE officials said that the INS Sandhayak is the 71st warship to be delivered by GRSE to the Indian Navy over the last 62 years. The relationship between the Indian Navy and the Defence Shipyard began in 1961 with the delivery of India's first indigenously built warship INS Ajay.

The INS Sandhayak is the reincarnation of another ship by the same name which was also a survey vessel. It was commissioned into the Indian Navy in 1981 and decommissioned in 2021. The ship was also built by GRSE. The new INS Sandhayak and the remaining ships of the series are far more advanced than their predecessors who have all been decommissioned.

The GRSE officials said that these survey ships are capable of full-scale coastal and deep-water hydrographic surveys of port and harbour approaches as well as the determination of navigation channels and routes.

The GRSE officials said that the Sandhayak-class of SVLs can undertake surveys of maritime limits and collection of oceanographic and geographical data for defence applications.

“These ships can also carry a helicopter each, participate in low-intensity combat and function as hospital ships. They can also be used for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations,” the GRSE officials said.

The GRSE officials said that they are ideally suited to carry out their designated operations.

“Fully designed by GRSE’s Design Team to meet the requirements of the Indian Navy, the INS Sandhayak was built using ‘Integrated Construction’ technology. This complied with applicable provisions and regulations of the Classification Society (IRS),” the GRSE officials said.

The GRSE officials said that they are building 18 more warships for the navy, including three 17A Advanced Frigates, eight Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft and four Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessels.