INS Darshak
Encyclopedia
INS Darshak is a hydrographic survey ship in the Indian Navy
, under the Eastern Naval Command
.
and commissioned
into the Naval service at Visakhapatnam
under the command of Capt SS Karnik in 2001, Darshak is the Indian Navy's eighth hydrographic survey
ship to have been indigenously designed and constructed. Incidentally, the first indigenously built survey ship of the Navy, inducted in 1964 and decommission
ed in 1990, was also named INS Darshak.
The new Darshak is equipped with a range of surveying
, navigation
al and communication
systems. The next-generation surveying systems provided onboard include the multibeam swath echo
sounding system, differential global positioning system, motion sensors, sea gravimeter
, magnetometer
oceanographic sensors, side scan sonar
s and an automated data logging system. These are designed to meet the stringent international/ISO 9002 digital survey accuracy standards required for the production of electronic navigation charts and publications.
The Darshak is powered by two diesel engines and is capable of sustained speeds. The ship's multi-role capability places her in the league of the most versatile survey vessels in the world. It can undertake a variety of tasks under trying conditions.
s off the coast of Tamil Nadu
. This included exploring the submerge
d remains of the lost city of Poompuhar in Tamil Nadu.
Darshak, under the command of Capt P Jayapal, was deployed off Poompuhar, about 15 nautical miles (28 km) north of Nagapattinam
. The ship carried out an extensive hydrographic survey and diving operations in the area off the Tharangambadi coast. During the operations, which lasted for nearly a month, the ship recovered some objects of archaeological importance. A ‘U’ shaped structure, located three miles (5 km) off the coast at a depth of 23 metres, was discovered during one of the dives. The structure was 85 metres in peripheral length and about two metres in height while the distance between the arms was about 13 metres. The structure was covered with marine growth and the centre was buried under silt
. Local fishermen claimed that the structure was one of six such submerged structures.
Darshak also recovered a shipwreck supposed to be of a Dutch
ship sunk by the French
near the end of the 18th century. Three lead
ingot
s, each about a metre long and weighing approximately 80 kg, were recovered by divers. They were marked with "W. Blackett" which was the name of a British
company and the marking "1792" which is presumed to be the date of their manufacture. Moreover, the ingots bear the emblem of the Dutch East India Company
.
Navy divers carried out further dives at the site and identified a two-metre long cannon
which, although attached to the wreck, was deeply embedded in the seabed. The ship’s diving team managed to recover the cannon, despite adverse sea conditions and the ship not being equipped to carry out excavations. The cannon, which was covered with extensive marine growth, is 2.1 metres in length and weighs approximately 700 kg.
Indian Navy
The Indian Navy is the naval branch of the armed forces of India. The President of India serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff , usually a four-star officer in the rank of Admiral, commands the Navy...
, under the Eastern Naval Command
Eastern Naval Command
The Eastern Naval Command of the Indian Navy is one of its three major formations. It utilizes Visakhapatnam as its HQ, and has bases there and at Kolkata....
.
The Ship
Built by Goa Shipyard LimitedGoa Shipyard Limited
Goa Shipyard Limited is one of India's leading shipyards. It is located on the West Coast of India at Vasco da Gama, Goa at . It was established in 1957, originally by the Portuguese-India govt as "Estaleiros Navais de Goa", to build barges to be used in Goa's growing mining industry, which took...
and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
into the Naval service at Visakhapatnam
Visakhapatnam
Visakhapatnam is a major sea port on the south east coast of India. With a population of approximately 1.7 million, it is the second largest city in the state of Andhra Pradesh and the third largest city on the east coast of India after Kolkata and Chennai. According to the history, the city was...
under the command of Capt SS Karnik in 2001, Darshak is the Indian Navy's eighth hydrographic survey
Hydrographic survey
Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore oil exploration/drilling and related disciplines. Strong emphasis is placed on soundings, shorelines, tides, currents, sea floor and submerged...
ship to have been indigenously designed and constructed. Incidentally, the first indigenously built survey ship of the Navy, inducted in 1964 and decommission
Ship decommissioning
To decommission a ship is to terminate her career in service in the armed forces of her nation. A somber occasion, it has little of the elaborate ceremony of ship commissioning, but carries significant tradition....
ed in 1990, was also named INS Darshak.
The new Darshak is equipped with a range of surveying
Hydrographic survey
Hydrographic survey is the science of measurement and description of features which affect maritime navigation, marine construction, dredging, offshore oil exploration/drilling and related disciplines. Strong emphasis is placed on soundings, shorelines, tides, currents, sea floor and submerged...
, navigation
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
al and communication
Communication
Communication is the activity of conveying meaningful information. Communication requires a sender, a message, and an intended recipient, although the receiver need not be present or aware of the sender's intent to communicate at the time of communication; thus communication can occur across vast...
systems. The next-generation surveying systems provided onboard include the multibeam swath echo
Echo (phenomenon)
In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound, arriving at the listener some time after the direct sound. Typical examples are the echo produced by the bottom of a well, by a building, or by the walls of an enclosed room and an empty room. A true echo is a single...
sounding system, differential global positioning system, motion sensors, sea gravimeter
Gravimeter
A gravimeter or gravitometer is an instrument used in gravimetry for measuring the local gravitational field of the Earth. A gravimeter is a type of accelerometer, specialized for measuring the constant downward acceleration of gravity, which varies by about 0.5% over the surface of the Earth...
, magnetometer
Magnetometer
A magnetometer is a measuring instrument used to measure the strength or direction of a magnetic field either produced in the laboratory or existing in nature...
oceanographic sensors, side scan sonar
Sonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
s and an automated data logging system. These are designed to meet the stringent international/ISO 9002 digital survey accuracy standards required for the production of electronic navigation charts and publications.
The Darshak is powered by two diesel engines and is capable of sustained speeds. The ship's multi-role capability places her in the league of the most versatile survey vessels in the world. It can undertake a variety of tasks under trying conditions.
Archaeological Investigations
INS Darshak was used to investigate historically significant shipwreckShipwreck
A shipwreck is what remains of a ship that has wrecked, either sunk or beached. Whatever the cause, a sunken ship or a wrecked ship is a physical example of the event: this explains why the two concepts are often overlapping in English....
s off the coast of Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
. This included exploring the submerge
Submerge
Submerge is an Indian dance and clubbing scene founded in 2002 by MTV India VJ Nikhil Chinapa, with DJ Pearl, Chinappa's wife, as a co-founder....
d remains of the lost city of Poompuhar in Tamil Nadu.
Darshak, under the command of Capt P Jayapal, was deployed off Poompuhar, about 15 nautical miles (28 km) north of Nagapattinam
Nagapattinam
Nagapattinam is a town in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the administrative headquarters of Nagapattinam District. It is a prominent seaport on the east coast of India and an important centre of trade and commerce.The town of Nagapattinam dates back to the Sangam period...
. The ship carried out an extensive hydrographic survey and diving operations in the area off the Tharangambadi coast. During the operations, which lasted for nearly a month, the ship recovered some objects of archaeological importance. A ‘U’ shaped structure, located three miles (5 km) off the coast at a depth of 23 metres, was discovered during one of the dives. The structure was 85 metres in peripheral length and about two metres in height while the distance between the arms was about 13 metres. The structure was covered with marine growth and the centre was buried under silt
Silt
Silt is granular material of a size somewhere between sand and clay whose mineral origin is quartz and feldspar. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body...
. Local fishermen claimed that the structure was one of six such submerged structures.
Darshak also recovered a shipwreck supposed to be of a Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
ship sunk by the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
near the end of the 18th century. Three lead
Lead
Lead is a main-group element in the carbon group with the symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead is a soft, malleable poor metal. It is also counted as one of the heavy metals. Metallic lead has a bluish-white color after being freshly cut, but it soon tarnishes to a dull grayish color when exposed...
ingot
Ingot
An ingot is a material, usually metal, that is cast into a shape suitable for further processing. Non-metallic and semiconductor materials prepared in bulk form may also be referred to as ingots, particularly when cast by mold based methods.-Uses:...
s, each about a metre long and weighing approximately 80 kg, were recovered by divers. They were marked with "W. Blackett" which was the name of a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
company and the marking "1792" which is presumed to be the date of their manufacture. Moreover, the ingots bear the emblem of the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
.
Navy divers carried out further dives at the site and identified a two-metre long cannon
Cannon
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
which, although attached to the wreck, was deeply embedded in the seabed. The ship’s diving team managed to recover the cannon, despite adverse sea conditions and the ship not being equipped to carry out excavations. The cannon, which was covered with extensive marine growth, is 2.1 metres in length and weighs approximately 700 kg.