INS Nipun is a specialized naval vessel, specifically a Diving Support Vessel (DSV), which is a type of ship designed to support complex underwater operations. The name "Nipun" is derived from Sanskrit, meaning "adept," "capable," or "skilled". It is the second vessel of the Nistar-class, following its sister ship INS Nistar.
The vessel's origin is rooted in the Indian Navy's need for a dedicated, indigenous platform to support deep-sea diving and submarine rescue operations, a capability previously lacking or reliant on a mix of older vessels and shore facilities. The contract for its construction, along with INS Nistar, was signed in September 2018 with Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) in Visakhapatnam. INS Nipun was delivered to the Indian Navy on July 30, 2026, and formally commissioned on August 31, 2026, at the Naval Dockyard in Mumbai. Its creation solved the problem of not having a purpose-built "mother ship" to carry and operate the Navy's Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicles (DSRVs), a gap that had existed for nearly eight years after the DSRVs were inducted in 2018 and 2019.
The mechanism of INS Nipun centers on its role as a floating operational base for underwater missions. It is equipped with specialized systems like saturation diving gear, which allows divers to operate at depths up to 300 metres for extended periods, and a dynamic positioning system for precise station keeping. Crucially, it functions as the "mother ship" for the Indian Navy's Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV), which is the smaller vehicle that descends to a distressed submarine to evacuate personnel. The vessel also carries Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and features a self-propelled hyperbaric lifeboat for evacuating divers under pressure.
INS Nipun connects directly to the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative, as it was indigenously designed and constructed by HSL, with nearly 75% indigenous content. Its commissioning, along with INS Nistar (based on the East Coast), ensures the Indian Navy now has a dedicated submarine rescue and deep-sea diving capability on both the Western and Eastern seaboards. This capability strengthens India's ability to respond to underwater contingencies for its own fleet and positions it as a potential "Preferred Submarine Rescue Partner" for other navies in the region.