INS Chilka

INS Chilka
Ship name	Chilka
Ship class	Autonomous Water Radiology Vessel
Ship owner	Indian Navy
Ship builder	Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers
Ship launched	2009
Ship commissioned	2010
Ship homeport	Chilka Lake
Ship length	40 m
Ship beam	8 m
Ship speed	15 kn
Ship range	2000 nmi
Ship crew	5–8

INS Chilka INS Chilka is an unmanned survey vessel operated by the Indian Navy for hydrographic and oceanographic missions in the Indian Ocean and adjacent littorals. Built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers at Kolkata and based at Chilka Lake, the vessel supports coastal mapping, environmental monitoring, and data collection for naval and civilian agencies. Chilka contributes to national maritime domain awareness alongside other Indian naval platforms and regional hydrographic services.

Design and Specifications

Chilka was designed as an autonomous surface vessel integrating technologies from National Institute of Ocean Technology, Indian Space Research Organisation, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Centre for Marine Living Resources & Ecology, and private firms in the Kolkata shipbuilding cluster. The hull form took inspiration from designs used by National Institute of Oceanography and international firms such as Saab Kockums, Thales Group, and Lockheed Martin for reduced acoustic signature and improved seakeeping in the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea. Propulsion combines diesel-electric systems similar to installations on vessels built by Larsen & Toubro and Bharati Shipyard, providing endurance comparable to research vessels operated by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and British Antarctic Survey. Onboard power management borrows control algorithms developed by Indian Space Research Organisation and control architectures influenced by systems from Siemens and ABB.

Construction and Commissioning

Construction took place at the Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers yard under a programme coordinated with the Directorate of Naval Design and field-tested by the Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory. Keel-laying and fabrication referenced standards used by Bureau of Indian Standards and classification societies such as Indian Register of Shipping and Lloyd's Register. Trials involved instrument calibration with agencies including National Institute of Ocean Technology, Indian Meteorological Department, and Central Water Commission, and sea trials were observed by officers from Eastern Naval Command and the Hydrographic Department. The vessel was formally commissioned into service in a ceremony attended by representatives from Ministry of Defence (India), Integrated Defence Staff, and local civil authorities in Odisha.

Operational History

Chilka has been deployed for bathymetric charting alongside the Hydrographic Office and to validate data for Admiralty charts used by merchant fleets such as Shipping Corporation of India and international companies including Maersk Line and Mediterranean Shipping Company. It has supported search and survey tasks in coordination with Indian Coast Guard, National Disaster Management Authority, Marine Fisheries Census, and research institutions like Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute and Indian Council of Agricultural Research. Chilka’s data pipelines feed hydrographic databases used by International Hydrographic Organization, United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, and regional initiatives linked to Indian Ocean Rim Association and Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation.

Sensors and Armament

Sensor suites aboard were integrated from suppliers with experience supplying systems to Defence Research and Development Organisation projects and include multibeam echosounders similar to those used by National Oceanography Centre (UK), side-scan sonars akin to units supplied to United States Navy, and conductivity-temperature-depth probes used by Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Navigation integrates systems from Navayuga Engineering Company and satellite navigation using NavIC, Global Positioning System, and augmentation services employed by Indian Space Research Organisation. Tactical interfaces allow interoperability with platforms like INS Kochi, INS Kolkata, INS Shivalik, and coastal surveillance systems of Bharat Electronics Limited. The vessel is unarmed but can carry payloads for remote deployment by teams from Indian Navy survey units or scientific parties from Indian Institute of Science and Indian Institutes of Technology.

Crew and Accommodation

Although primarily autonomous, Chilka supports embarked personnel from Hydrographic Department and researchers from National Institute of Oceanography, Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Indian Agricultural Research Institute and universities such as Jawaharlal Nehru University, University of Calcutta, and Indian Institute of Technology Madras. Accommodation and habitability systems follow standards promulgated by Directorate General of Shipping and healthcare protocols coordinated with Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre and local naval medical facilities at Visakhapatnam and Kochi. Onboard mission control integrates command elements similar to shore control stations operated by United States Geological Survey unmanned programmes and software toolchains developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation laboratories.

Notable Deployments and Exercises

Chilka participated in cooperative survey missions with the Indian Coast Guard during disaster response exercises linked to Cyclone Phailin preparedness and regional humanitarian assistance drills involving National Disaster Response Force and Indian Air Force assets. It supported baseline surveys for port projects involving Paradip Port Trust, Visakhapatnam Port Trust, and Kamarajar Port Limited and contributed data to environmental assessments for initiatives by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Chilka Lake Sanctuary management. Training and interoperability exercises included coordination with Indian Naval Academy, Naval War College (India), and multinational exercises under Indian Ocean Rim Association frameworks, alongside data-sharing with academic partners such as IIT Kharagpur and Anna University.

Category:Auxiliary ships of the Indian Navy Category:Survey ships of India