# INS Samarthak, an L&T-built multi-purpose vessel, is commissioned into the Navy at Karwar

URL: https://upsc.help/current-affairs/2026-10-17/ins-samarthak-commissioned-karwar/
Date: 17 October 2026 (2026-10-17)
Source: The Hindu, News
UPSC papers: GS3
Publisher: upsc.help (Pratidin), free and open-source UPSC Civil Services current affairs. Not affiliated with UPSC. Every fact was checked against the source reports by a separate review before publishing.

**In one line:** The Indian Navy commissioned INS Samarthak, the first of two multi-purpose vessels ordered from L&T, at Karwar on 16 October 2026, with more than 75% indigenous content.

The Indian Navy commissioned INS Samarthak at the Karwar naval base in Karnataka on 16 October 2026. Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan presided over the ceremony, attended by the Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Krishna Swaminathan. The ship is a multi-purpose vessel built by Larsen & Toubro (L&T) at its Kattupalli shipyard near Chennai under the Make in India initiative. According to the Defence Ministry it has more than 75% indigenous content, though some technologies were sourced from abroad. It is about 107 metres long and displaces more than 3,750 tonnes.

The Defence Ministry signed the contract with L&T in March 2022 for two multi-purpose vessels, valued at about ₹887 crore. The keels of Samarthak and its sister ship Utkarsh were laid in March 2023. Samarthak was launched in October 2024 and delivered to the Navy on 27 August 2026, while Utkarsh was launched in January 2025. The ship was built under the 'Buy-Indian' category and used extensive modular construction and pre-outfitting, in which sections are built and fitted out before being joined, to speed up the work.

The vessel is designed as a versatile platform for trials and evaluation of new weapons, radars and sensors. Its roles include maritime surveillance and patrolling, launching and recovering targets, launching torpedoes, towing, support for gunnery and anti-submarine exercises, salvage support, logistics for island territories and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. It can act as a mothership for drones and unmanned boats, and in an emergency can be converted into a limited hospital ship. Its crest shows an Indian elephant rising from the waves.

## Prelims facts

- INS Samarthak was commissioned at the Karwar naval base on 16 October 2026, with Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan presiding.
- It was built by L&T at Kattupalli near Chennai and has more than 75% indigenous content.
- The March 2022 contract covers two multi-purpose vessels, Samarthak and Utkarsh, valued at about ₹887 crore.
- Roles include weapons and sensor trials, target and torpedo launch, surveillance, towing, drone launch and disaster relief with limited hospital capability.

## Quick recall

- **Where and when was INS Samarthak commissioned?** At the Karwar naval base, Karnataka, on 16 October 2026.
- **Who presided over INS Samarthak's commissioning?** Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan.
- **Which company built INS Samarthak, and where?** Larsen & Toubro (L&T), at its Kattupalli shipyard near Chennai.
- **Indigenous content of INS Samarthak?** More than 75%, according to the Defence Ministry.
- **How many multi-purpose vessels does the March 2022 L&T contract cover?** Two: Samarthak and Utkarsh (about ₹887 crore).
- **When was Samarthak delivered to the Navy?** 27 August 2026.
- **Approximate length and displacement of INS Samarthak?** About 107 metres; more than 3,750 tonnes.
- **Name two non-combat roles of INS Samarthak.** Humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (with limited hospital capability) and trials of new weapons and sensors.

## Prelims practice question

With reference to INS Samarthak, recently commissioned into the Indian Navy, consider the following statements:
1. It was built by a public sector shipyard in Visakhapatnam.
2. It can act as a mothership for unmanned aerial and surface systems.
3. It was commissioned at the Karwar naval base.
Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (b) 2 and 3 only. Statement 1 is incorrect: it was built by Larsen & Toubro, a private company, at Kattupalli near Chennai. Statement 2 is correct: it can launch drones and unmanned boats. Statement 3 is correct: it was commissioned at Karwar, Karnataka, on 16 October 2026.

## UPSC previous-year questions this connects to

- UPSC Mains 2022, GS3: What are the maritime security challenges in India? Discuss the organisational, technical and procedural initiatives taken to improve maritime security. (https://upsc.help/pyq/gs3/#q344)
  How to use this story in the answer: Cite INS Samarthak under technical initiatives, as an indigenous platform adding surveillance, patrolling and unmanned-systems capability.
- UPSC Mains 2026, GS2: "IPMDA (Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness) bridges the gap between India's SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) vision and the Quad's collective Indo-Pacific strategy." Make a critical assessment of the statement focusing on IPMDA. (https://upsc.help/pyq/q252-ipmda-indo-pacific-partnership-maritime-domain-awareness-bridges/)
- UPSC Mains 2014, GS3: In 2012, the longitudinal marking for high-risk areas for piracy was moved from 65 degrees east to 78 degrees east in the Arabian Sea by the International Maritime Organisation. What impact does this have on India's maritime security concerns? (https://upsc.help/pyq/q318-2012-longitudinal-marking-high-risk-areas-piracy-moved/)

## Mains practice question

The commissioning of a privately built multi-purpose vessel with over 75% indigenous content reflects changes in India's naval shipbuilding. Discuss the significance and limits of such indigenisation. (150 words)

### Model answer

On 16 October 2026 the Navy commissioned INS Samarthak, a multi-purpose vessel built by L&T at Kattupalli with more than 75% indigenous content.

## Significance
- **Private capacity:** a private yard delivered a commissioned naval vessel, widening the shipbuilding base.
- **Speed:** modular construction and pre-outfitting; contract (March 2022) to commissioning took about four and a half years.
- **Capability:** a trials platform for indigenous weapons, radars and sensors, freeing frontline ships.
- **New roles:** mothership for drones and unmanned boats; HADR with limited hospital capability.
- **Policy fit:** built under the 'Buy-Indian' category, in line with Make in India.

## Limits
- Some technologies were still sourced from abroad.
- Indigenous content measures value, not control of critical systems.
- Small orders (two vessels, about ₹887 crore) limit economies of scale.

## Way forward
- Larger, steady orders for private and public yards.
- Indigenous design and critical systems, not just assembly.

Samarthak shows progress in indigenisation, but self-reliance needs Indian technology at the core.

## The basics

## Why this matters

Navies need more than frontline warships. They need ships that test new weapons and sensors, tow targets, launch drones and carry relief when disaster strikes. On 16 October 2026 the Indian Navy commissioned INS Samarthak, a multi-purpose vessel built by a private Indian shipyard with more than 75% indigenous content. It is a small but useful case study in defence indigenisation.

## What the ship is

Samarthak was built by Larsen & Toubro (L&T) at its Kattupalli shipyard near Chennai. It is about 107 metres long and displaces more than 3,750 tonnes. Vice-President C. P. Radhakrishnan presided over the commissioning at the Karwar naval base in Karnataka, with the Chief of the Naval Staff, Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, present.

## From contract to commissioning

A warship passes through several milestones before it joins the fleet. See Life cycle of a warship.

## What it will do

These roles are explained in Multi-purpose vessel and Humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

## The indigenisation angle

The ship was built under the 'Buy-Indian' category of procurement and used extensive modular construction, building and fitting out blocks before joining them, to save time. A private yard delivering a commissioned naval vessel widens India's shipbuilding base beyond public sector yards. The idea of measuring this is explained in Indigenous content in defence.

## Sources

- https://tribuneindia.com/news/india/ins-samarthak-mothership-for-drones-commissioned
- https://openthemagazine.com/india/indian-navy-commissions-indigenous-multi-purpose-warship-ins-samarthak
- https://www.newkerala.com/news/a/newly-commissioned-multi-purpose-warship-ins-samarthak-75-pc-120.htm
- https://www.naval-technology.com/news/indian-navy-takes-delivery-of-first-indigenous-multi-purpose-vessel/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samarthak-class_Multi_Purpose_Vessel