India will send its first-ever manned mission into the deep sea in 2024 after sending crewed missions into space in 2023. Minister of state for science and technology Jitendra Singh said on Saturday three scientists will be sent at a depth of 5,000 metres (5 kilometres) in the sea to find hidden mineral deposits, according to a report by HT's sister publication Live Hindustan on Sunday.
The mission, which has been called Samudrayan, was launched by the Centre in October this year.
"With the launch of this Unique Ocean Mission, India joins the elite club of nations such as the USA, Russia, Japan, France and China to have such underwater vehicles for carrying out subsea activities," Singh said at the launch event in Chennai on October 30.
Samudrayan has been undertaken by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT). It will be a part of the Deep Ocean Mission, which will be implemented at a total budget ₹4,077 crore for five years.
The preliminary design of the manned submersible MATSYA 6000 under the Samudrayan project, has already been completed.
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The MATSYA 6000 can carry three people in a titanium alloy personnel sphere of a 2.1-metre diameter enclosed space with an endurance of 12 hours and an additional 96 hours in case of an emergency situation.
{{/usCountry}}The MATSYA 6000 can carry three people in a titanium alloy personnel sphere of a 2.1-metre diameter enclosed space with an endurance of 12 hours and an additional 96 hours in case of an emergency situation.
{{/usCountry}}Union minister Singh said in October sea trials of 500 metre rated shallow water version of the manned submersible are expected to take place in the last quarter of 2022, adding, the MATSYA 6000 will be ready for trials by the second quarter of 2024.
Besides working on the first manned mission to the ocean, India will also launch its maiden human space mission "Gaganyaan" in 2023. With Gaganyaan's launch, India will be the fourth country after the United States, Russia and China to launch a human space flight mission.
Singh told Parliament on Tuesday the objective of Gaganyaan is to demonstrate the capability to send humans to low earth orbit (LEO) onboard an Indian Launch Vehicle and bring them back to earth safely.