New Delhi, Dec 23 INSV Kaundinya, the Indian Navy's pioneering stitched sailing vessel that revives India's ancient shipbuilding and seafaring traditions, will undertake her maiden overseas voyage on December 29, an official said on Tuesday.
The vessel will be flagged off from Porbandar, Gujarat, for Muscat, Oman, symbolically retracing the historic maritime routes that connected India with the wider Indian Ocean world for millennia, said the official in a statement.
Named after the legendary mariner Kaundinya, who is believed to have sailed from India to Southeast Asia in ancient times, the ship embodies India's historic role as a maritime nation.
A statement issued by the Indian Navy said that INSV Kaundinya is inspired by depictions of ancient Indian ships and constructed entirely using traditional stitched-plank techniques.
It represents a rare convergence of history, craftsmanship and modern naval expertise. Unlike contemporary vessels, her wooden planks are stitched together using coconut coir rope and sealed with natural resins, reflecting a shipbuilding tradition once prevalent along India’s coasts and across the Indian Ocean.
This technology enabled Indian mariners to undertake long-distance voyages to West Asia, Africa and Southeast Asia long before the advent of modern navigation and metallurgy, said the statement.
The project was undertaken through a tripartite MoU between the Ministry of Culture and the Navy as part of India's efforts to rediscover and revive indigenous knowledge systems.
Built by traditional artisans under the guidance of master shipwright Babu Sankaran and supported by extensive research, design and testing by the Indian Navy and academic institutions, the vessel is fully seaworthy and capable of oceanic navigation.
The Indian Navy formally inducted and named the Ancient Stitched ship as INSV Kaundinya on May 21 at a ceremonial event held at Naval Base, Karwar.
Minister of Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat presided over the event as the Chief Guest, marking the culmination of an extraordinary project that celebrates India's rich shipbuilding heritage.
INSV Kaundinya is a stitched sail ship, based on a 5th century CE ship depicted in the paintings of Ajanta Caves.
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