ORV Sagar Manthan: India Launches Advanced Ocean Research Vessel (Yard 3041)

India marked a major milestone in ocean science on 9 September 2026 with the launch of ORV Sagar Manthan, an advanced Ocean Research Vessel, at the Rishi Bankim Shipyard in Kolkata. The launch was carried out virtually by Union Minister of Earth Sciences Dr Jitendra Singh, with his wife Manju Singh naming the vessel as per tradition. The event highlights India's growing self-reliance in building sophisticated oceanographic platforms domestically.

Project ORV Sagar Manthan Overview

1. Builder: The vessel, identified as Yard 3041, has been designed and built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Limited (GRSE), a defence public sector undertaking.
2. Client: It has been constructed for the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), which functions under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES).
3. Mission and Lifespan: ORV Sagar Manthan falls under Vertical-4 (Deep Ocean Survey and Exploration) of India's Deep Ocean Mission and comes with a projected service life of 30 years, built at a cost of around Rs 840 crore.
4. Purpose: The ship is designed to eventually replace India's ageing ORV Sagar Kanya, a 43-year-old vessel originally procured from Germany in 1983. Officials also confirmed plans to add more oceanographic and polar research vessels to India's fleet in the coming years.

Notably, the ship reached this launch stage within just two years of contract signing and about five months after its keel-laying ceremony, reflecting rapid execution on the project.

Key Features of India's Advanced Ocean Research Vessel ORV Sagar Manthan

1. All-weather, multidisciplinary platform built to operate in extreme oceanic conditions, including the Southern Ocean
2. Advanced onboard systems, including dynamic positioning, multibeam bathymetry, multichannel seismic equipment, sub-bottom profiling, and weather radar
3. Deployment facilities for Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs)
4. Research capabilities covering exploration along the Indian Ocean's mid-oceanic ridges to identify multi-metal hydrothermal sulphide mineralisation
5. Scientific functions such as establishing environmental baselines, CTD profiling, and upper-air data collection
6. Dual-class certification from the Indian Register of Shipping (IRS) and the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), meeting international regulatory standards
7. Drop keels for enhanced operational flexibility during deep-sea research

Following the launch, the vessel will undergo superstructure work, system integration, and sea trials before final delivery to NCPOR, expected in 2028.