"Engineering nerve center": Navy official hails INS Malvan's state-of-the-art IPMS for agility in shallow waters
Karwar, July 23
In a significant boost to the Indian Navy's coastal security and anti-submarine warfare capabilities, INS Malvan, the second of the indigenously designed and built Mahe-class Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft, was formally commissioned into service at Karwar on Wednesday.
The commissioning ceremony, held on July 22, 2026, marks a major milestone in India's 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' initiative in the defence sector.
Speaking on the occasion, Pravin Tiwari, the Commanding Officer of INS Malvan, highlighted the ship's journey from construction to induction.
"The keel of the ship was laid in 2023, and after carrying out rigorous trials of all the weapons, sensors, and stability, the ship was finally delivered to the Navy on March 31, 2026," Tiwari said.
He further added, "The ship has completed all its sea-acceptance trials and is ready for deployment at sea. The ship is fitted with the latest torpedoes, launchers, EW and ESM suites, combat management systems designed by Indian industry and is a proud symbol of Make in India."
Another Navy official, explaining the technical prowess of the vessel from the heart of the ship, described the Machinery Control Room as the "engineering nerve center."
"This is the machinery control room, which is basically the engineering nerve center of our ship. Our ship INS Malvan is powered by three high-speed diesel engines which provide us unmatched agility, high speeds, and rapid acceleration in shallow waters, which is basically the role of the ship," the official said.
The official further emphasised the role of digital integration in modern naval warfare, stating, "So, the propulsion and the auxiliary system which is fitted on board is controlled by a state-of-the-art integrated platform management system which we also call as IPMS."
"This digital architecture has helped our highly skilled crew to monitor all the parameters and the ship's health from a single console. This is a classic example of how advancement and automation have helped reduce load on a crew while maintaining operational reliability," he added.
The Indian Navy commissioned Malvan, the second of the Mahe-class Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC) on Wednesday.
The ceremony was presided over by Air Chief Marshal AP Singh, Chief of the Air Staff, in the presence of Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command. Other senior naval officers, representatives from Cochin Shipyard Ltd., Kochi, and veterans were in attendance.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Interesting to see the focus on digital integration with IPMS. The automation reducing crew load while maintaining reliability is a smart approach for modern naval operations.
Excellent news for our coastal security! Anti-submarine warfare is critical given the underwater threats we face. Hope the Navy inducts more such vessels quickly. Jai Hind! 🙏
Good achievement but let's not forget that our Navy still relies on many imported components for such vessels. We need to push for complete indigenization of all systems, including engines and sensors.
The IPMS concept sounds similar to what many Western navies use. Glad to see India adopting modern digital architecture. The shallow-water agility will be crucial for operations in the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay.
So proud of our Navy's indigenous capabilities! The fact that this ship was designed and built in India with Indian systems shows our technological progress. More such vessels needed for our eastern coast too.
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