Vice-President commissions first indigenous multi-purpose vessel

Karwar: At the naval base in Karwar, Vice-President C P Radhakrishnan commissioned INS Samarthak into the Indian Navy on Friday. The vessel is the Navy’s first indigenous multi-purpose platform and the first major warship constructed by a private Indian shipyard.

Larsen & Toubro built the ship at its Kattupalli facility in Tamil Nadu under a March 2022 contract valued at approximately Rs. 887 crore for two vessels. More than 75 per cent of its content is indigenous, a figure repeatedly cited by officials as evidence of progress under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative.

Speaking at the ceremony, which was also attended by Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Krishna Swaminathan and Karnataka Labour Minister Santosh Lad, the Vice-President stated that self-reliance in defence is no longer merely an aspiration but an emerging reality. He linked the induction to India’s strategic autonomy and to the broader vision of a developed and self-reliant nation.Radhakrishnan noted that maritime technology is evolving rapidly, with autonomous systems, advanced sensors, artificial intelligence and networked operations reshaping naval requirements. A dedicated trials platform, he observed, would allow the Navy to evaluate and integrate indigenous innovations more quickly.

INS Samarthak is intended to serve as a versatile support and evaluation asset. It will function as a mothership for unmanned and autonomous surface and aerial vehicles, provide a controlled environment for testing next-generation weapons and sensors, and conduct maritime surveillance and offshore patrols.

Additional roles include the launch and recovery of targets for training, heavy towing, salvage support, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, and limited hospital-ship duties. The vessel measures approximately 107 metres in length, displaces about 3,750 tonnes, reaches a maximum speed of 15 knots and has a range of roughly 4,500 nautical miles. It incorporates a dynamic positioning system that enables precise station-keeping during specialised operations.

The Vice-President also recalled India’s maritime heritage, referring to the naval traditions associated with Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and the Chola dynasty, and highlighted Karwar’s strategic value due to its deep natural harbour and proximity to the Arabian Sea. He praised the Navy’s operational record in anti-piracy missions, non-combatant evacuations and humanitarian assistance across the Indian Ocean region.

Admiral Swaminathan described the commissioning as a significant step toward greater self-reliance and noted that Samarthak is the first major warship contracted to and constructed by a private shipyard for the Navy. The second vessel in the series is in advanced stages of construction and trials, with additional multi-purpose vessels planned.

The induction frees frontline combatants from certain support and evaluation tasks while expanding the Navy’s capacity to test and field indigenous systems. Officials present characterised the project as both a technological and industrial milestone that strengthens domestic supply chains and broadens private-sector participation in warship construction.

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