On November 14, 2023, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) announced that the Naval Science & Technological Laboratory (NSTL), Visakhapatnam has developed a new generation of Man-portable Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (MP-AUVs) for mine countermeasure missions. The MP-AUVs are equipped with Side Scan Sonar and Underwater cameras for real-time detection and classification of Mine-Like Objects and deep learning based target recognition algorithms. Robust underwater acoustic communication has been integrated to facilitate inter-AUV data exchange. Field trials at NSTL/Harbour have been successfully completed, and the system is expected to be ready for production in a couple of months. Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO Dr Samir V Kamat termed this as a major milestone towards deployable, intelligent, and networked mine countermeasure solution. The Release ID is 2190096, and the Visitor Counter is 6795.
Key Entities Referenced
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO): Organisation that developed new generation Man-portable Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (MP-AUVs).
Naval Science & Technological Laboratory (NSTL): Laboratory in Visakhapatnam where the MP-AUVs were developed.
Ministry of Defence
DRDO develops new generation Man-portable
Autonomous Underwater Vehicles for mine
countermeasure missions
Posted On: 14 NOV 2025 5:31PM by PIB Delhi
A new generation of Man-portable Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (MP-AUVs) have been
successfully developed by the Naval Science & Technological Laboratory (NSTL),
Visakhapatnam of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) for mine
countermeasure missions. The system comprises multiple AUVs equipped with Side Scan
Sonar and Under Water cameras as primary payloads for real-time detection &
classification of Mine-Like Objects. The onboard deep learning based target recognition
algorithms enable autonomous classification, significantly reducing operator workload and
mission time.
Additionally, a robust underwater acoustic communication has been integrated to facilitate
inter-AUV data exchange during operations ensuring enhanced situational awareness.
The recently-concluded field trials at NSTL/Harbour have successfully validated salient
systems parameters and critical mission objectives. Multiple industry partners are involved
in system realization and the system will be ready for production in next couple of months.
Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman DRDO Dr Samir V Kamat has
complimented the NSTL team for the successful development of MP-AUVs, terming it as a
major milestone towards deployable, intelligent, and networked mine countermeasure
solution. It offers rapid response capability with reduced operational risk and logistic
footprint for naval mine warfare applications, he said.****
SR/Savvy
(Release ID: 2190096) Visitor Counter : 6795
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