Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Saturday dedicated to the nation a one-of-its-kind Sea-keeping and Maneuvering Basin (SMB) at the Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (NSTL) in Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
The minister also handed over the "Maareech Advanced Torpedo Defence System" developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to the Indian Navy.
Set up as a joint effort of the DRDO and the Navy, the SMB facility is one of its kind in the country.
The facility puts India among the few nations in the world having the capability to undertake comprehensive hydrodynamic model testing of naval platforms and weapons systems.
The SMB would help design and build state-of-the-art naval combatants such as submarines, ships and torpedoes.
Maareech, a joint project of the Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory (NPOL), Kochi and NSTL, Visakhapatnam is a state-of-the-art indigenous system for torpedo detection and countermeasures.
This system offers a complete solution to detect and locate incoming torpedos and apply countermeasures to protect naval platforms against torpedo attacks.
Two production-grade Maareech systems have been developed and user evaluation trials completed aboard two Indian Navy ships.
Complimenting the vital role of the DRDO in self reliance and promoting the "Make in India" efforts, the minister said the development of a complex system like Maareech is an excellent model of synergy among the DRDO, Navy, and public and private industries, demonstrating yet another milestone in the "Make in India" programme.
