VISAKHAPATNAM: The Indian Navy on Friday officially commissioned INS Nistar, the country’s first indigenously designed and built support vessel at a ceremony held at the Naval dockyard here. The grand event was attended by Union minister of state Sanjay Seth, among others. The ship, the first of the two diving support vessels that were being built by Hindustan Shipyard is designed to undertake complex deep-sea saturation diving and rescue operations. Sanjay Seth said, "On this special and proud day of Nistar's commissioning, the entire nation proudly resonates with the call for Aatmanirbharta and the outcome is evident right before us.” “The commissioning of INS Nistar firmly reinforces the role of the Indian Navy as the first responder and preferred security partner in the region. Notably, all the 57 new warships in the pipeline are being constructed indigenously,” he said. Seth expressed confidence in the capabilities of the armed forces, stating that India stands committed and resolute to tackle any form of misadventure from its adversaries. He described the induction of INS Nistar as a technological leap and a milestone in the Indian shipbuilding chapter towards building a future-ready force. Navy chief admiral Dinesh Tripathi termed the commissioning of INS Nistar as the nation's first diving support vessel and noted that the new Nistar upheld the tradition of the original vessel, which played a crucial role during the Indo-Pak war of 1971, as in detecting the Pakistani submarine Ghazi. Nistar, he said, has returned with renewed energy and objectives. “The previous version of this vessel was launched on March 29, 1971, and made significant contributions during the Indo-Pak war the same year. It was stationed right here in Visakhapatnam and was instrumental in identifying the Pakistani submarine Ghazi.” He expressed his confidence that this new Nistar would continue reinforcing the illustrious legacy of its predecessor. This warship has been designed and built according to the standards set by the Indian Register of Shipping (IRS). The vessel is highly specialized and capable of conducting deep sea diving and rescue operations, a feature present in select Navies worldwide. The name Nistar is derived from Sanskrit and translates to liberation, rescue, or salvation. The ship, spanning 118 metres with a nearly 10,000-tonne tonnage, is equipped with cutting-edge diving equipment and has the capability of performing deep sea aaturation diving up to 300 metres. It has a side stage for diving operations up to 75 metres depth. A release from the Navy said the ship would function as the Mother Ship for the deep submergence rescue vessel, tasked with rescuing and evacuating individuals in the event of a submarine emergency underwater. The vessel is fitted with a combination of remotely operated vehicles capable of conducting diver monitoring and salvage operations at depths reaching 1000 metres.