Lok Sabha Question No. 266 (STARRED), answered on 2025-03-19
Subject: Matsya-6000
Ministry: EARTH SCIENCES
Asked by: Shri Jagdambika Pal, Shri Bibhu Prasad Tarai

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *266 TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, 19 TH  MARCH, 2025

## MATSYA-6000

## *266.      SHRI BIBHU PRASAD TARAI: SHRI JAGDAMBIKA PAL:

Will the Minister of EARTH SCIENCES be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the safety measures incorporated into the Matsya-6000 to ensure the well-being of the scientists operating at extreme ocean depths;
- (b) the manner in which the Government plans to address issues like underwater voice communication inefficiencies;
- (c) whether  there  are  any  plans  to  collaborate  with  international  oceanographic institutes  for  knowledge  exchange  and  skill  enhancement  related  to  deep-sea submersible operations; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) FOR MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

(a) to (d): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## STATEMENT LAID ON THE TABLE OF THE LOK SABHA IN REPLY TO (a) to (d) OF STARRED QUESTION NO. *266 REGARDING "MATSYA-6000" TO BE ANSWERED ON MARCH 19, 2025

- (a) Matsya-6000 is India's flagship human submersible aimed to carry three persons to a depth of 6000 meters, developed by the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences, as part of the Samudrayaan project of the Deep Ocean Mission launched by the Government of India in 2021.

Matsya-  6000  (2.1-meter  diameter  personnel  sphere)  which  houses  the  crew  is made of a Titanium alloy and maintains an inside pressure of 1 atmosphere (atm). Further, the personnel sphere spherical pressure hull is tested to bear 720 bars of pressure, which is 1.2 times more than the pressure expected at 6000 meters. All human safety parameters are continuously monitored during the operations and are communicated  to  the  ship-based  Mission  Control  Centre  through  an  acoustic modem, with the pilot communicating updates through the Underwater Acoustic Telephone every 30 minutes. It is designed for operations of up to 12 hours, with an emergency endurance of up to 96 hours, supported by a DNV-certified Human Support and Safety System (HSSS). DNV  (Det Norske Veritas) is an internationally  accredited  registrar  and  classification  society  headquartered  in Norway. The HSSS maintains the oxygen level at 20 per cent, the CO2 level at less than 1000  ppmv  (part per million by volume), and controls humidity by measurement sensors to ensure human life comfort and safety.

The submersible is designed to perpetually float unless made to dive through water filling  in  its  ballast  tanks.  It  has  three  different  combinations  of  weight  drop mechanisms for ascending to the surface to maintain the safety. It has additional emergency power, control, and communication devices for emergency scenarios.

- (b) Matsya-6000 is equipped with an Underwater Acoustic  Telephone that has been operated and tested for operations up to 10,000 meters depth of human operation vehicles,  in  addition  to  a  sub-phone  rated  for  500-meter  depth  operations.  The voice  communication  is  designed  to  be  utilised  every  30  minutes  with  the submersible pilot and the Mission Control Centre so that continuous communication is ensured.
- (c) Yes Sir.
- (d) NIOT  has  signed  MoU  with  the  IFREMER  (French  Research  Institute  for Exploitation  of  the  Sea),  France,  facilitating  scientific  knowledge  exchange  and participation with the French human scientific submersible for 6000 meters depth named NAUTILE.

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