By Aritra Banerjee
Indian Navy’s premier technical training institute INS Valsura organised a workshop on the contemporary topic ‘Leveraging Artificial Intelligence (Al) for Indian Navy’ from 19 to 21 Jan 2022. Conducted under the aegis of Southern Naval Command, speakers from renowned IT Companies like Google, IBM, Infosys and TCS shared the industry perspective during the three-day event. Distinguished academicians from IIT Delhi, New York University, Amrita University and DA- IICT also spoke about the latest trends and applications of Al.
Vice Admiral MA Hampiholi delivered the keynote address, Flag Officer Commanding in Chief, Southern Naval Command, who stressed the strategic importance of this niche technology and its application in the Indian Navy. The webinar saw online participation by over 500 participants from across the country.
Indian Navy focuses on incorporating Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in critical mission areas. Located at Jamnagar, INS Valsura has already been designated as the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Big Data and a state of art lab on AI, and Big Data Analysis (BDA) was set up in Jan 2020.
The Navy is currently in the process of creating a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in the field of AI at INS Valsura, which has been instrumental in the progress of pilot projects on the adoption of AI and BDA in the domain of maintenance, HR and perception assessment, in collaboration with academia and industry. In addition, the Navy is deeply involved in unifying and reorganising its enterprise data, as data is the fuel for all AI engines.
Organisationally, the Navy has formed an AI core group that meets twice a year to assess all AI/ ML initiatives. AI initiatives being steered by the Navy are envisaged to have both tactical and strategic level impact. Periodic reviews of AI projects are being held to ensure adherence to the promulgated timelines. The Navy also conducts training in AI/ ML across all speciality levels for its officers and sailors. This training is held both within the Navy’s own training schools and renowned IITs. Several personnel have undergone big and small AI linked courses over the last three years.
These initiatives of the Indian Navy are in sync with the country’s vision of making “India the global leader in AI, ensuring responsible and transformational AI for all”.
The Indian Navy is also progressing around 30 AI projects/initiatives encompassing Autonomous Systems, Language Translation, Predictive Maintenance, Inventory Management, Text Mining, Perimeter Security, Maritime Domain Awareness and Decision Making in a bid to technologically evolve as a naval power.
