INS Sandhayak: GRSE delivers largest survey vessel built in India on Navy Day

Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers on Monday delivered the largest survey vessel built in India, INS Sandhayak to the Indian Navy on Navy day 2023.

INS Sandhayak is the first in a series of four Survey Vessels (Large) being built by GRSE. The Naval vessel was launched by on 05 December 2021.

INS Sandhayak is the first of four advanced Survey Vessels (Large) or SVLs. It is a new version of a previous ship with the same name, which was a survey vessel in the Indian Navy from 1981 to 2021. The new INS Sandhayak and its companions are more advanced than the older vessels, which have all been decommissioned.


The Indian Navy celebrates December 4 as the Navy Day. GRSE has partnered with the Indian Navy for the last 62 years after delivery of the first indigenously-built warship INS Ajay in 1961. Since then, GRSE has delivered 70 more warships to the Indian Navy.

“Delivery of a 110-metre-long warship of the quality of the INS Sandhayak is no mean feat, particularly when no platform of its kind has ever been built in India. What is remarkable is that GRSE continued to work on this ship even during the pandemic years,” said GRSE in a statement.

These survey ships are capable of full-scale coastal and deep-water hydrographic survey of port and harbour approaches as well as the determination of navigation channels and routes. In addition, the Sandhayak-class of SVLs can undertake surveys of maritime limits and collection of oceanographic and geographical data for defence applications. Such data adds muscle to India’s maritime capabilities.

These ships can also carry a helicopter each, participate in low-intensity combat and function as hospital ships. They can also be used for Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations.

Cmde P R Hari IN (Retd), Chairman and Managing Director, GRSE, lauded the effort put in by Team GRSE, the Indian Navy and all the other stakeholders and said, “We are proud to deliver this ship on the Navy Day and we are confident to deliver the balance three ships of the SVL project as per the committed timelines.”

At the moment, GRSE is building 18 more warships for the Indian Navy, including three 17A Advanced Frigates, eight Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft and four Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessels.