According to Union Minister of State for Science and Technology, Dr. Jitendra Singh, India is preparing to deploy its first manned underwater submarine under the Deep Ocean Mission.
The submarine, designed to depths of up to 500 metres, is expected to be launched this year, and plans to extend its reach to 6,000 metres by next year.
The announcement was made during the second meeting of the Mission Steering Committee at Prithvi Bhawan in New Delhi. The Deep Ocean mission aims to discover underwater resources, improve knowledge about the deep-sea ecosystem and further boost India's blue economy.