The Indian Navy is all set to commission its latest survey vessel Sandhayak in Visakhapatnam on Saturday and the ship is expected to boost the force's surveillance apparatus in the strategic waterways.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar and Vice Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Naval Command will be among the distinguished guests to grace the occasion.
"The event will mark the formal induction into the Navy of the first of four survey vessel (large) ships under construction at M/s Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata," a Navy spokesperson said here on Thursday.
Sandhayak was delivered to the Indian Navy on December 4 after completing a rigorous and comprehensive trial programme both in the harbour and at sea.
The primary role of the ship would be to carry out full scale hydrographic surveys of ports, harbours, navigational channels, coastal areas and deep seas, with an aim to enable safe marine navigation.
In its secondary role, the ship will be capable of undertaking a range of naval operations.
Sandhayak is equipped with state-of-the-art hydrographic equipment including deep and shallow water multibeam echo-sounders, autonomous underwater vehicle, remotely operated vehicle, data acquisition and processing system and satellite-based positioning systems.