- विज्ञापन -
The Indian Navy is all set to induct the state-of-the-art indigenous Diving Support Vessel (DSV), INS Nistar, on July 18, 2025, at the Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is expected to preside over the commissioning ceremony, marking a significant leap in India’s maritime capabilities, particularly in the realm of submarine rescue and deep-sea diving operations.
What Is INS Nistar?
Built by Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) under the Government’s ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ initiative, INS Nistar is India’s first fully indigenous DSV. Measuring approximately 118 metres in length and displacing around 9,350–10,000 tonnes, the vessel has been designed to operate at sea for over 60 days, with a capacity to carry more than 200 personnel.
With over 75 per cent indigenous content and contributions from more than 120 MSMEs, Nistar embodies the Make in India mission in the defence sector. It combines operational depth with strategic self-reliance, reducing India’s dependence on foreign technology for critical rescue infrastructure.
INS Nistar is specifically designed to support complex diving and submarine rescue missions. It can perform saturation diving up to 300 metres, side diving up to 75 metres, and coordinate rescue operations at depths of 1,000 metres with the help of Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs).
The vessel will act as a “mother ship” for the Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV), which can be launched to extract sailors from distressed submarines deep underwater. It also boasts a 15-tonne subsea crane, a dynamic positioning system, and advanced onboard medical facilities including decompression chambers, hyperbaric medical systems, and an eight-bed hospital.
What Does Nistar Mean And What Is Its Connection With Navy?
The name “Nistar,” derived from Sanskrit, meaning “liberation” or “rescue,” is not new to the Indian Navy. The current vessel revives the legacy of an earlier INS Nistar, a Soviet-origin submarine rescue ship commissioned in 1971 and decommissioned in 1989. That ship played a crucial role during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, particularly in operations surrounding the sinking of PNS Ghazi, a Pakistani submarine.
What Is The Significance Of INS Nistar?
With increasing underwater threats in the Indo-Pacific region, especially from hostile submarines and undersea surveillance platforms, the commissioning of INS Nistar strengthens India’s ability to carry out rescue missions, underwater repairs, and training exercises independently. It joins hands with its sister vessel INS Nipun to form a robust DSV duo, enhancing the Navy’s preparedness for both peacetime emergencies and combat scenarios.
As India expands its blue water naval ambitions, INS Nistar stands as a testament to the country’s growing self-reliance, technological prowess, and commitment to safeguarding life underwater.
