Kolkata-based Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE), has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Norwegian firm Kongsberg to co-design and construct India’s first-ever indigenous polar research vessel (PRV). The MoU was signed in Oslo on 03 June, 2025 in the presence of Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, who hailed the development as a milestone in India's polar and ocean research capabilities.
A PRV is a specialised ship designed to conduct research in polar and oceanic regions. India currently operates three polar research stations — Bharati and Maitri in Antarctica, and Himadri in the Arctic — and has long planned to build its own PRV. In 2023, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju stated that the PRV would be ready within five years, with an estimated cost of Rs 2,600 crore.
The PRV, to be constructed in GRSE’s Kolkata shipyard, will be equipped with advanced scientific instruments, and contribute to climate research and ocean studies, while also enhancing India's shipbuilding sector under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.