ICGS Ajit commissioned into the Indian Coast Guard on Friday at Goa Shipyard Limited, adding an indigenous Fast Patrol Vessel to the fleet that will be stationed at Okha in Gujarat. Dr Sirish Choudhary, IDAS, Principal Integrated Financial Advisor (Indian Coast Guard), presided over the ceremony.

The ship is the seventh of eight Fast Patrol Vessels built by Goa Shipyard for the Coast Guard. Her name means invincible.

ICGS Ajit commissioned for duty off the Gujarat coast

According to the Indian Coast Guard, the vessel will be based at Okha. The port lies at the mouth of the Gulf of Kutch in Devbhumi Dwarka district, on the north-western coast close to the maritime boundary with Pakistan. The Gulf carries heavy fishing and merchant traffic and hosts major oil terminals at Vadinar and Sikka.

The Coast Guard described the new ship as state of the art, fitted with advanced weaponry and modern control systems.

Surveillance, rescue, anti-smuggling and pollution response

ICGS Ajit will carry out four main tasks, the force said: maritime surveillance, search and rescue, anti-smuggling operations and marine pollution response. These are core Coast Guard duties along India's coastline and across its Exclusive Economic Zone. Fast Patrol Vessels are built to reach a scene quickly, close to shore, where most incidents involving fishing boats and small craft take place.

Two of these roles have been in action in recent weeks. Last month, the Coast Guard and Gujarat ATS intercepted an Iranian dhow west of Lakshadweep in a narcotics seizure of around 526 kg. This week, search and rescue was the focus of SAREX-2026 off Paradip, the national level exercise.

Seventh ship from Goa Shipyard's Fast Patrol Vessel line

Goa Shipyard Limited, a defence public sector undertaking at Vasco da Gama, designed and built the vessel. ICGS Ajit was launched on 24 October 2025 together with her sister ship ICGS Aparajit, the eighth and last of the series. The shipyard handed the ship over to the Coast Guard on 25 August 2026, after the customary First Reading Ceremony. More than 60 percent of her content is indigenous, according to reports at the time of delivery.

At the launch, the Ministry of Defence said the ships in the series are around 52 metres long and displace around 320 tonnes. They are the first vessels of their class in India to use controllable pitch propellers, which improve manoeuvrability and propulsion efficiency.

Delivery specifications put the top speed at more than 27 knots, with an endurance of 1,500 nautical miles.

Sister ships already in service

The first ship of the series, ICGS Adamya, was commissioned at Paradip in September 2025. In June, ICGS Akshay was commissioned at Goa Shipyard in a similar ceremony, and others from the line have joined the fleet in between.

ICGS Ajit joins the fleet in the Coast Guard's golden jubilee year

With ICGS Ajit commissioned, the Coast Guard adds another indigenous hull in its golden jubilee year. The force, which functions under the Ministry of Defence, was raised in 1977.

Commandant (Junior Grade) Manish Talan was named as the ship's commanding officer when Goa Shipyard handed her over in August.