ગુજરાતી
English
Ahmedabad, December 30, 2025
The Navy ship INSB Kaundinya has been built using India’s 2,000-year-old technology. Its maiden voyage from Porbandar in Gujarat to Muscat in Oman was announced on December 29, 2025, covering a distance of 1,400 kilometers (750 nautical miles). It is named after the navigator ‘Kaundinya’, which also means an ancient sage.
Gujarat possessed the knowledge of shipbuilding 5,000 years ago. Trade was conducted from the ports of Gujarat 5,000 years ago. However, that knowledge was not utilized; instead, the shipbuilding technology using ropes from Kerala was employed.
Gujarat’s Shipbuilding
The oldest knowledge of shipbuilding was found near Lothal in Gujarat.
The world’s oldest Harappan port is Lothal, dating back to 2500 BCE. This was the place where large ships arrived. For 5,000 years, trade was conducted with Mesopotamia from the ancient Lothal port.
Ancient Gujarat had a thriving shipbuilding and boat-making industry. Teak wood was exported to ancient Persia for shipbuilding. The water entry gate in Dhaka was built from the north side and the exit gate from the south side. Gaps were kept on both sides for the entry and exit of water.
The water outlets were closed with wooden planks to maintain the necessary water level for the ships.
The city had a dock for anchoring ships and loading and unloading goods. The ships or large boats of the Harappan culture had flat bottoms. They were brought to Lothal during high tide. The people of Lothal traded with other parts of India using these ships.
Goa Company
M/s Hodi Innovations of Goa built this ship under the leadership of skilled artisans from Kerala. It is a rich example of maritime tradition and seafaring trade. A company in Goa has built this ship using the nearly 2000-year-old ‘Tanka’ method. The hand-stitched joints were made entirely using traditional methods and raw materials by skilled artisans from Kerala, led by master shipwright Babu Sankaran.
No other country in the world, besides India, possesses such a ship. Powered by wind in its sails, it was built without the use of any nails. The 2000-year-old ‘Tanka’ method was employed. It is constructed from wooden planks stitched together with coconut fiber rope. The wooden planks were sewn together with rope made from coconut fibers. No iron nails were used in the ship’s construction. It was built using natural materials and traditional methods.
The construction was carried out by artisans from Kerala. It was built by renowned shipbuilder Babu Sankaran. Thousands of joints were hand-stitched. No previous design or structure of the ship survived, so its entire outline was recreated using Ajanta paintings as a reference. It was launched in February 2025 at the Hodi shipyard in Goa. It has no engine or modern GPS system. It only has square cotton sails and paddles. A compass determines the direction. It is entirely powered by wind energy. Made of wooden parts and a traditional steering mechanism, this ship is unique and unlike any other ship in any navy in the world.
Cloth sails are used. A halyard system is used for management. In the first leg of its journey, it will travel from Gujarat to Oman, a journey expected to take 15 days, with 13 sailors and 3 officers on board. The Navy will operate this ship on ancient maritime routes. Currently, no one has experience operating such a ship. Therefore, the crew members underwent six months of special training.
The ship is 65 feet long, 22 feet wide, 13 feet high, and weighs 50 tons. This project showcases India’s thousand-year-old history of maritime trade. The central government approved this project in 2023, with the aim of demonstrating India’s ancient shipbuilding skills to the world.
The ship features square cotton sails and a steering board instead of a rudder, a device used to control ships before the invention of the rudder. The sails are adorned with images of the Gandaberunda (a mythical bird) and the sun, while the lion figure on the bow and the Harappan-style stone anchor further reinforce its historical authenticity. It was inspired by a painting from the Ajanta Caves. This represents a unique achievement in our modern shipbuilding history.
