Part of India's Arihant-class submarines, INS Aridaman is a more advanced ballistic missile submarine (SSBN) than its predecessors INS Arihant (2016) and INS Arighaat (2024).
About India’s Nuclear Powered Submarine Programme
- The Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) programme was initiated more than three decades ago, involving both private firms and the Defence Research & Development Organisation, with help from Russia.
- It primarily focused on developing the ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), which are nuclear propelled, and can carry multiple sets of submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), tipped with single or multiple nuclear warheads.
Significance of Nuclear Powered Submarines for India
- Nuclear Triad Completion: The submarine cements India's position in the select group of nations (alongside the US, Russia, China, and France) capable of launching nuclear weapons from land, air, and sea.
- Strategic Deterrence: Carries nuclear ballistic missiles, strengthening India’s deterrence against regional adversaries China and Pakistan.
- Stealth & Endurance: Nuclear propulsion allows long underwater missions, making it highly survivable and hard to detect.
- Extension of Nuclear doctrine: Showcases guarantee of India's second-strike capability with No-first Use policy.
