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Indian Express
19-07-2025
- General
- Indian Express
All about INS Nipun and how it will help save lives in deep sea
The Indian Navy on Friday commissioned INS Nistar at the Naval Dockyard in Visakhapatnam. Indigenously designed and constructed by Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Nistar is the first of two diving support vessels (DSVs) that were ordered by the Navy in 2018. Its sister ship, Nipun, was launched in 2022, and is expected to be commissioned in the near future. Meant to support deep-sea diving and submarine rescue operations, these DSVs will enhance India's operational preparedness in the underwater domain and reinforce the country's strategic maritime posture across the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), the Navy said. The original INS Nistar was a submarine rescue vessel acquired by the Indian Navy from the erstwhile Soviet Union in 1969, and commissioned in 1971. It remained in service till 1989, during which time it was the centrepiece of the Navy's diving and submarine rescue operations. The new Nistar will carry forward this legacy. But unlike its predecessor, it comprises more than 80% indigenous content, with about 120 MSMEs having participated in its construction. This makes Nistar the first indigenously designed and constructed diving support and submarine rescue vessel in India. 'Nistar is testimony to the growing capability and maturity of our maritime industrial base, and another shining example of Aatmanirbhar Bharat,' Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi said during the commissioning ceremony. With a displacement of around 10,500 tonnes, length of almost 120 metres, beam of more than 20 metres, and an endurance of more than 60 days at sea, the new Nistar is also larger and more capable than its 800-tonne predecessor. According to the Navy, Nistar's specialised onboard diving complex has both air and saturation diving systems, which are complemented by underwater remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and side scan SONARs. Moreover, Nistar will be the mothership of an advanced deep submergence rescue vehicle (DSRV). The Indian Navy acquired two DSRVs from the UK's M/s James Fisher & Sons in 2018 and 2019 — one each for Nistar and Nipun. Nistar can also carry a 15-tonne subsea crane, and support helicopter operations. Aboard Nistar is an operation theatre, an intensive care unit, and an eight-bedded hospital with hyperbaric medical facilities, all critical towards meeting the vessel's operational roles, the Navy said. The induction of Nistar into the Navy after the successful integration of the two DSRVs is a major milestone for India's deep-sea capabilities. With the Navy continuing to expand its submarine arm, it has to reckon with increased operational risks of operating in the deep sea. These risks demand a technologically capable platform for submarine rescue operations — the primary mandate of the Nistar-class vessels. Officials told The Indian Express that Nistar is built to be both a diving support and a submarine rescue vessel, making it a strategic platform which strengthens India's position as a net maritime security provider within the IOR and beyond. With the induction of the two DSRVs in 2018-19, India entered a groupd of only 12 nations with these dedicated capabilities, and one of the very few possessing DSRVs that can be requisitioned by another country and airlifted for rapid international deployment during emergencies. Until now, however, the Navy relied on commercially leased platforms for the deployment of DSRVs, limiting its instant-deployment capabilities and round-the-clock rescue readiness. Nistar (and Nipun) will change this. The vessel's dynamic positioning and diving support features mean that the vessel can operate autonomously in the high seas. Officials said that its high transit speed ensures rapid deployment during emergencies, drastically reducing response time in scenarios where every minute counts. Based in Visakhapatnam, Nistar will serve as the DSRV mothership in the Eastern Seaboard, and Nipun, based in Mumbai, will serve in the Western Seaboard, completing the Navy's dual-coast operational posture. This arrangement guarantees simultaneous, high-readiness submarine rescue coverage across both maritime frontiers. This strategic capability would be particularly crucial in various maritime humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) operations carried out by the Navy. Through bilateral agreements and Memorandums of Understanding with other navies, India has committed to sharing its submarine rescue expertise, and providing actual rescue support during emergencies world wide. 'It positions India as a credible first responder in undersea contingencies and amplifies its soft power through the projection of maritime goodwill,' an official told The Indian Express. The officer added that the development sends a signal that India's growing naval capabilities are aligned with the shared security interests of its partners and neighbours. 'In a world where underwater operations are becoming more complex and risks more unpredictable, INS Nistar ensures that India not only safeguards its own interests but is also ready and equipped to serve the greater good of global maritime safety,' the official said.
New Indian Express
18-07-2025
- General
- New Indian Express
Indian Navy commissions indigenous Diving Support Vessel to boost underwater operations
NEW DELHI: The Indian Navy on Friday commissioned first of its kind ship, an indigenously built Diving Support Vessel (DSV) which will be reinforcing its strategic maritime posture across the Indian Ocean Region at Naval Dockyard, Visakhapatnam in the presence of the MoS (Def) Sanjay Seth. DSV has been indigenously designed and constructed by Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), Visakhapatnam. On commissioning, the ship will join the Eastern Naval Command to support deep sea diving and submarine rescue operations. Main roles of the vessel include undertaking deep sea diving and conducting rescue operations from distressed submarines. The commissioning of Nistar and its induction into the Indian Navy's Eastern Naval Command will not only enhance India's operational preparedness in the underwater domain, but will also reinforce its strategic maritime posture across the Indian Ocean Region. The approx Rs 2,400 cr project of two Diving Support Vessels (Nistar & Nipun) were launched in September 2022. TNIE earlier reported the exhaustive list of Capital Ship and Submarine projects of the Indian Navy, which included these two DSVs. It included 61 warships which are under various stages of construction. Various projects for construction of 17 warships and nine Submarines are under the advanced stages of approvals.
Time of India
05-07-2025
- General
- Time of India
Govt schools celebrate literacy drive milestone
Patna: Govt schools across the state observed 'Nipun Diwas' on Saturday to mark four years of the National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (Mission NIPUN Bharat). The mission, launched to strengthen foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) skills in students from classes I to III, aims to achieve its goals by the academic year 2026-27. In Bihar, the initiative currently covers around 70,000 schools. While most schools followed the education department's directive to play the official Nipun theme song during the celebrations, students who demonstrated proficiency in language and mathematics were not recognised in a few schools in Patna. On this occasion, additional chief secretary of the education department, S Siddharth, addressed a letter to students, which was read out in schools across the state. In his message, he urged students to go beyond textbooks and embrace essential life skills, values, and curiosity-driven learning. He wrote, "True proficiency or Nipunta is reflected in your behaviour. Be curious, think critically and foster creativity." by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Is it legal? How to get Internet without paying a subscription? Techno Mag Learn More Undo Following a baseline survey conducted in March 2022 by the State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) to assess class II students, each district set five-year goals and prepared implementation plans. Since then, key resources like FLN and TLM (teaching-learning materials) kits were supplied to primary schools in 2022-23, and class-wise practice books in Hindi, mathematics, English and Urdu have been distributed annually between 2022 and 2025. In addition, children have been provided with essential school items such as bags, water bottles and stationery from the 2023-24 session.
Time of India
12-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
COVID-19: Isolation beds kept ready in Kalyan-Dombivli civic hospitals
Thane: Amid the recent rise in COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra , the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation in Thane district has kept 15 isolation beds ready at two civic hospitals to meet any urgency, officials said on Thursday. Maharashtra reported 107 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday, taking the total of viral infections detected in the state so far this year to 1,700, as per the public health department. Two more deaths of COVID-19 patients also were recorded in the last couple of days, taking the toll since January to 21, an official release on Wednesday said. Of the new infections, 34 were recorded in Mumbai, one in Thane district, seven in Thane Municipal Corporation limits, five in Navi Mumbai, one in Kalyan Municipal Corporation, four in Pune district, 44 in Pune Municipal Corporation, seven in Pimpri Chinchwad, one in Sangli, two in Sangli Municipal Corporation and one in Nagpur Municipal Corporation, it said. As part of COVID-19 preparedness , 10 isolation beds have been kept ready at the Bai Rukmini Bai Hospital and five at the Shastri Nagar Hospital , and RT-PCR and antigen testing kits are available, KDMC Commissioner Abhinav Goyal told reporters. "People should report symptoms promptly and not panic," he said. On monsoon preparedness, he said a 24x7 emergency control room is operational at the municipal headquarters, with deputy commissioner-level officers on night duty. Emergency rooms have also been activated in ward offices, with specially assigned multi-departmental teams. An NDRF team has already arrived to coordinate disaster response and awareness, the official said. Reaffirming the civic body's commitment to quality education, Goyal said the KDMC will launch five semi-English schools from the academic year 2025-26. "To ensure quality education, a guardian officer has been appointed for every municipal school," he added. The civic body also unveiled initiatives under the BaLA (Building as Learning Aid) method, introducing mural-based learning and improving school infrastructure, including repairs, furniture and timely distribution of books, uniforms and essentials. Under the "Nipun" programme, primary education will be prioritised, with digital quality monitoring through the Vinoba Bhave App and regular inspections by guardian officers, the civic body said.
The Hindu
12-06-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
COVID-19: Isolation beds kept ready in Kalyan-Dombivli civic hospitals in Maharashtra's Thane
Amid the recent rise in COVID-19 cases in Maharashtra, the Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation in Thane district has kept 15 isolation beds ready at two civic hospitals to meet any urgency, officials said on Thursday (June 12, 2025). Maharashtra reported 107 new COVID-19 cases on Wednesday (June 11, 2025), taking the total of viral infections detected in the State so far this year to 1,700, as per the Public Health Department. Two more deaths of COVID-19 patients also were recorded in the last couple of days, taking the toll since January to 21, an official release on Wednesday (June 11, 2025) said. Of the new infections, 34 were recorded in Mumbai, one in Thane district, seven in Thane Municipal Corporation limits, five in Navi Mumbai, one in Kalyan Municipal Corporation, four in Pune district, 44 in Pune Municipal Corporation, seven in Pimpri Chinchwad, one in Sangli, two in Sangli Municipal Corporation and one in Nagpur Municipal Corporation, it said. As part of COVID-19 preparedness, 10 isolation beds have been kept ready at the Bai Rukmini Bai Hospital and five at the Shastri Nagar Hospital, and RT-PCR and antigen testing kits are available, KDMC Commissioner Abhinav Goyal told reporters. "People should report symptoms promptly and not panic," he said. On monsoon preparedness, he said a 24x7 emergency control room is operational at the municipal headquarters, with deputy commissioner-level officers on night duty. Emergency rooms have also been activated in ward offices, with specially assigned multi-departmental teams. 'An NDRF team has already arrived to coordinate disaster response and awareness,' the official said. Reaffirming the civic body's commitment to quality education, Mr. Goyal said the KDMC will launch five semi-English schools from the academic year 2025-26. "To ensure quality education, a guardian officer has been appointed for every municipal school," he added. The civic body also unveiled initiatives under the BaLA (Building as Learning Aid) method, introducing mural-based learning and improving school infrastructure, including repairs, furniture and timely distribution of books, uniforms and essentials. Under the "Nipun" programme, primary education will be prioritised, with digital quality monitoring through the Vinoba Bhave App and regular inspections by guardian officers, the civic body said.
