VESSEL REVIEW | Sarthak & Saksham – Indian Coast Guard’s newest long-range EEZ patrol vessels

India’s state-owned Goa Shipyard (GSL) recently handed over two new stee-hulled offshore patrol vessels (OPV) ordered by the Indian Coast Guard.

ICGS Sarthak (“Meaningful”) and ICGS Saksham (“Capable”) are the final two units of eleven Samarth-class OPVs ordered by the coast guard from GSL. The Samarth-class vessels were designed and built after the coast guard decided to expand its maritime patrol assets in the wake of the deadly Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008.

The newer OPVs are further improvements of the coast guard’s Sankalp-class patrol vessels, the most noticeable differences being a wider beam and more powerful engines.

Sarthak and Saksham each have a length of 105 metres, a beam of 13 metres, a displacement of approximately 2,350 tonnes, and space for 18 officers and 108 enlisted personnel. Two MTU 20V8000 M71L 9,100kW diesel engines drive controllable-pitch propellers to deliver a maximum speed of 26 knots and a range of over 6,000 nautical miles or an endurance of 20 days.

The propulsion arrangement also includes Walchandnagar Industries gearboxes, a Geeta Engineering Works steering system, and a fin stabiliser system jointly developed by GSL and Naiad Dynamics.

Also available are a flight deck for one twin-engine utility helicopter and deck space for four small high-speed boats to be used for boarding and search and rescue. The boats include two Gemini Marine RIBs built by Goa-based Aquarius Shipyard.

Each vessel’s armament consists of a Medak/Shipunov 30-millimetre naval gun and two 12.7-millimetre heavy machine guns fitted on stabilised remote weapons mounts. A gunnery simulator is also fitted to aid in crew training. The electronics include an integrated bridge system, an integrated platform management system, and a power management system.

Sarthak and Saksham were commissioned into service in October 2021 and March 2022, respectively. The vessels will be operated by the coast guard on EEZ surveillance duties off India’s western and southwestern coasts. Other missions include maritime sovereignty patrols, law enforcement, anti-piracy patrols, environmental protection, and emergency response. For the latter roles, the OPVs have equipment for oil spill containment and external firefighting duties.

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