Why in news?
Hindustan Shipyard Limited delivered Nipun to the Indian Navy at Visakhapatnam on 30 July 2026.
It is the second vessel within India’s indigenous Diving Support Vessel project.
The delivery release reported nearly 75 per cent indigenous content at this stage.
Delivery precedes commissioning, so the official release correctly called the vessel Nipun.
Background
A Diving Support Vessel (DSV) provides specialised facilities for difficult underwater operations.
Nipun was designed and built by Hindustan Shipyard Limited at Visakhapatnam.
Its construction follows classification rules of the Indian Register of Shipping (IRS).
The Sanskrit name “Nipun” signifies someone adept, capable or skilled within a discipline.
Project chronology
- Construction began under a two-vessel project involving sister ships Nistar and Nipun.
- Both ships were launched at Visakhapatnam during September 2022.
- Nistar was delivered on 8 July 2025 and commissioned ten days later.
- Nipun was delivered on 30 July 2026, completing the project’s second delivery.
The 2022 project release described each vessel as 118.4 metres long.
It gave a maximum beam of 22.8 metres and displacement near 9,350 tonnes.
These launch-stage figures describe the class rather than a newly measured delivery specification.
Core capabilities
- Deep-sea diving teams can operate from purpose-built equipment and support spaces.
- Saturation-diving systems permit longer work periods under sustained underwater pressure.
- A side diving stage supports separate diving operations closer to the surface.
- Remotely Operated Vehicles assist diver monitoring, inspection and underwater salvage.
- The vessel can support rescue operations during emergencies involving disabled submarines.
What is saturation diving?
At depth, a diver’s body absorbs inert gas from the pressurised breathing mixture.
Repeated ascent requires slow decompression and can consume considerable operational time.
Saturation diving keeps divers pressurised within chambers between underwater work periods.
They complete one controlled decompression after finishing the mission’s extended working cycle.
This method requires chambers, diving bells, life-support systems and trained medical supervision.
Submarine rescue role
Nipun can serve as the mother ship for a Deep Submergence Rescue Vessel (DSRV).
The smaller rescue vehicle descends to a distressed submarine and connects with its escape hatch.
It can transfer trapped personnel to the surface vessel under controlled conditions.
The support ship provides launch, recovery, command, medical and decompression facilities.
Indigenous-content figures
The 2022 project release estimated approximately 80 per cent indigenous content for both ships.
The specific 2026 delivery release reported Nipun at nearly 75 per cent.
The current, vessel-specific delivery figure is safer for this dated news item.
Different project stages and calculation methods can produce apparently conflicting percentages.
Conclusion
Nipun expands India’s specialised deep-sea diving capacity while strengthening indigenous naval shipbuilding.