India Commissions First Indigenous Diving Support Vessel
Navy Chief hails it as a key operational asset, enhancing India's role as a regional rescue partner
July 19, 2025 - India's first indigenously designed and constructed Diving Support Vessel (DSV) INS Nistar, was inducted into the Indian Navy's fleet on Friday July 18 for undertaking complex deep-sea saturation diving and submarine rescue operations - a niche capability possessed by select navies globally.
The induction ceremony of the 118-metre ship took place at the Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam in the presence of Union Minister of State for Defence, Sanjay Seth.
“Nistar will provide critical submarine rescue support to the Indian Navy as well as our regional partners,” said Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi at the commissioning ceremony adding that INS Nistar is not just a technological asset, but a crucial operational enabler and this induction will enable India to emerge as a Preferred Submarine Rescue Partner in the region.
According to the Navy, INS Nistar is installed with state-of-the-art diving equipment such as remotely operated vehicles, self-propelled hyperbaric lifeboat and diving compression chambers. It can undertake diving and salvage operations up to a depth of 300 metres.
INS Nistar is expected to also serve as the Mother Ship for deep submergence rescue vessels to rescue and evacuate personnel from an underwater submarine in an emergency situation.
INS Nistar is the first of the two diving support vessels being built by Hindustan Shipyard Limited.
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