New Delhi: In a significant stride towards strengthening India’s indigenous shipbuilding capabilities and advancing maritime research infrastructure, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) Ltd has laid the keel for an advanced Acoustic Research Ship (ARS) being built for the Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory (NPOL), a unit of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
The keel-laying ceremony, held at GRSE’s shipyard in Kolkata, was graced by Dr Sameer V Kamat, Secretary, Department of Defence (R&D) and Chairman, DRDO, as the Chief Guest. Senior officials including Cmde PR Hari, IN (Retd), Chairman and Managing Director, GRSE; Cdr Shantanu Bose, IN (Retd), Director (Shipbuilding); Capt (IN) P Sunilkumar (Retd), Director (Corporate Planning & Personnel); Niranjan Bhalerao, Director (Finance); and representatives from DRDO and NPOL were also present on the occasion.
The contract for the ARS was signed between GRSE and NPOL in October 2024. Designed to be a cutting-edge research platform, the ship will measure 93 metres in length and 18 metres in width, and will be equipped with state-of-the-art acoustic and oceanographic research systems.
Powered by diesel-electric propulsion, the ARS will be capable of speeds ranging from 4 to 12 knots, with an endurance of 30 days or 4,500 nautical miles at top speed, accommodating up to 120 personnel. The vessel’s advanced features include a dynamic positioning system for operations up to Sea State 4 and three deck cranes for handling heavy research equipment.
The ship will enable deployment, towing, and retrieval of various acoustic modules, and facilitate high-resolution surveys of sound velocity profiles and ocean currents. It will also support meteorological and acoustic propagation studies, mooring operations, and data collection from buoys, thereby enhancing India’s underwater research and oceanographic capabilities.
Congratulating GRSE on achieving this milestone within six to seven months of the project commencement, Dr Kamat highlighted the ship’s importance in enhancing NPOL’s research capabilities. “NPOL has been operating Sagar Dhwani, built by GRSE in 1994, and for over 31 years, the ship has rendered yeoman service. It is very important that we build this new ship with capabilities far exceeding those of Sagar Dhwani, and I am confident GRSE will deliver within timelines,” he said.
Speaking on the occasion, Cmde PR Hari paid tribute to the Late Dr APJ Abdul Kalam on his 94th birth anniversary and reaffirmed GRSE’s commitment to innovation and indigenous excellence. “Beyond core warship building, GRSE has been actively contributing to research and development, particularly in autonomous platforms, green energy vessels, and portable steel bridges. We take pride in being the only shipyard in India currently building all types of research vessels, the Hydrographic Survey Vessels for the Indian Navy, the Acoustic Research Ship for DRDO, the Ocean Research Vessel for the Ministry of Earth Sciences, and the Coastal Research Vessels for the Geological Survey of India,” he said.
GRSE’s legacy in research vessel construction dates back to the 1980s and 1990s with the delivery of the first series of Sandhayak, class Survey Vessels to the Indian Navy. It also built the INS Sagardhwani for NPOL in 1994, a marine acoustic research vessel still in service and recently refitted at GRSE. Between 2023 and 2025, GRSE delivered three Sandhayak -class Survey Vessels, INS Sandhayak, INS Nirdeshak and INS Ikshak, to the Indian Navy and is building a fourth in the series.
Further strengthening its position in the research shipbuilding segment, GRSE signed a contract in July 2024 with the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Ministry of Earth Sciences, for the construction of an advanced Ocean Research Vessel, and is also building two Coastal Research Vessels for the Geological Survey of India.
With the keel laying of the ARS, GRSE has reaffirmed its pivotal role in driving India’s self-reliance in defence and scientific research shipbuilding under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative.
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