Hooghly Cochin Shipyard Limited (HCSL) has launched MV Major Dhyanchand, the sixth and final vessel in a series of 50-passenger hybrid-electric catamarans being built for the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI). The launch completes the delivery-stage milestone for the entire six-vessel programme. The vessel was launched by Smt. Nitha K., Assistant General Manager, Hooghly CSL, in the presence of the CEO of Hooghly CSL, the Director of IWAI (Kolkata), surveyors from the Indian Register of Shipping (IRS), IWAI representatives, and senior HCSL officials and employees. The catamarans use hybrid-electric propulsion technology, which is designed to reduce dependence on conventional fuels and lower emissions compared with traditional vessels. The programme forms part of broader efforts to strengthen India's inland waterways as an efficient and environmentally sustainable mode of passenger transport, while supporting the country's domestic shipbuilding capacity. Completion of the six-vessel series reflects HCSL's engineering expertise and the coordinated work of its workforce and project partners throughout the construction programme. The company said the achievement marks a further step in its contribution to greener vessel development for India's inland waterways sector, reinforcing the role of domestic shipbuilding in the modernisation and long-term growth of the country's inland water transport infrastructure.
