Indian Navy's diving support vessel arrives in Sri Lanka

The ship is fully capable of undertaking rescue operations from a submarine in distress and training of saturation divers.The ship is expected to depart the island nation on September 21.The vessel had earlier visited Trincomalee in September 2019 and March 2022 for a similar training deployment for divers of the Sri Lankan Navy.

The Indian Navy's diving support vessel 'Nireekshak' has docked at Sri Lanka's eastern port district of Trincomalee as part of India's ongoing commitment to enhancing regional capabilities and fostering closer ties under its 'Neighborhood First' policy.

The purpose of the visit is to facilitate Mixed Gas Diving training for the Sri Lanka Navy, the Indian High Commission here said.

The visiting ship was warmly welcomed by the Sri Lanka Navy on Thursday in accordance with naval traditions, the Lankan Navy said in a press release.

INS 'Nireekshak' is a 70.5m long Diving Support Vessel manned by a crew of 137 and the ship is commanded by Commander Jeetu Singh Chauhan, according to the release issued on Thursday.

During the ship's stay, the crew will take part in several programmes, with a view to promoting cooperation and goodwill between the two navies. In addition, diving training exercises with the Sri Lanka Navy Diving Unit and visiting some of the tourist attractions in the country are part of the itinerary.

'Nireekshak' is equipped with two six-man recompression chambers and one three-man diving bell. The ship is fully capable of undertaking rescue operations from a submarine in distress and training of saturation divers.

The ship is expected to depart the island nation on September 21.

The vessel had earlier visited Trincomalee in September 2019 and March 2022 for a similar training deployment for divers of the Sri Lankan Navy.

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