INS Dhruv, the first made-in-India ship that can track enemy satellites and ballistic missiles, is ready to be commissioned on September 10. The ship will also be the Indian Navy’s first dedicated resource for ballistic missile defence.
The 10,000-tonne ship, part of a classified project, will not only create maritime domain awareness for India in the Indian Ocean but also act as an early warning system for adversary missiles headed towards Indian cities and military establishments.
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It will put India in the elite club of countries that are equipped with sophisticated ocean surveillance ships, INS Dhruv will be an asset for the Indian Navy to track satellites, strategic missiles and map the Indian Ocean bed. The USA, Russia, China, and France are the only other countries that have similar vessels in their arsenal.
According to the Hindustan Times, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval is expected to commission the ship in Visakhapatnam in the presence of the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh and other DRDO and NTRO officials.
According to officials, INS Dhruv will be able to provide the Indian Navy with an “ECG of the Indian Ocean”, a reference to the electrocardiogram that is used to diagnose problems in the heart. This will help the Indian Navy plan better offensive operations in all three dimensions — sub-surface, surface and aerial.
Officials said INS Dhruv will act as a major force multiplier to India’s ocean surveillance capabilities. The Indian Navy already monitors the region from the Gulf of Aden to all the ingress routes from the South China Sea with long-range unmanned aerial vehicles, surveillance aircraft and Boeing P8I anti-submarine warfare.
As India looks to counter growing Chinese influence, it’s main focus is on its naval power and strengthening the Indian Navy’s capabilities is key to countering China’s influence in the Indian Ocean given how Beijing’s sea doctrine has taken priority over its land forces.
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INS Dhruv, the indigenously-developed surveillance ship has been built by Hindustan Shipyard Ltd at its Visakhapatnam facility under the “Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan” initiative. It has been developed with the help of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Navy with India’s Strategic Force Command and National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) as main intelligence consumers.
The objectives of the INS Dhruv are two -fold. One, track missiles using the two sensors on-board, the X-Band AESA primary radar and S-Band AESA secondary radar. And, two, gather electronic intelligence. The active electronically scanned array radars, or AESA, are considered a game-changer in radar technology, and can scan various spectrums to monitor satellites of adversaries that are watching over India.
The Indo-Pacific is increasingly becoming a centre for a growing geopolitical contest, with China already making several moves from strategic military bases to predatory economics to advance its own interests in the region. India has begun stepping up and successfully engaging countries in the region to a degree of success. Experts believe the Indo-Pacific will be the front-line of the future as China's nuclear submarines try to avoid detection before crossing the first island chain in the South China Sea.
