Built Handstitched Wooden Ship To 'Rekindle History', Says Sanjeev Sanyal As INSV Kaundinya Reaches Oman

New Delhi: The Stitched Ship Project, INSV 'Kaundinya', has completed its historic voyage to Muscat, Oman, after 18 days at sea on Wednesday. Speaking to Republic TV, Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council member Sanjeev Sanyal, who ideated the project and is a part of the voyage, said, "It has actually been 18 days onboard. We are lining up for the ceremonial entry into the Muscat harbour. Big events await us on the other side. We have got our sails up, and it has been quite a great day."

When Republic TV asked Sanyal if he had second thoughts on whether or not he should have taken up this enterprise, he said, "Not at all. I have been working on this for over 5 years." "From the concept to the design, to actually building the ship, and then the training procedure, everything culminated in this 18-day voyage," Sanyal observed. "These are tough ambitions," he added.

The project, allegedly inspired by an Ajanta cave painting, was Sanyal's brainchild, who has been working on the project for over 5 years now. Sharing the milestone on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Sanyal posted an image with the caption, "Enjoying the moment with Skipper Vikas Sheoran and Expedition in charge Hemanth Kumar ... We did it!!!"

The ship, stitched together with coir rope, runs purely on wind sails, which are accordingly designed, and there is not a single nail on it, Sanyal said.

Rekindling history

"India has a great maritime history and rich traditions, which date back to the Harappan civilisation, and these are not talked about very much, he said in his statement to Republic TV. He further stated that one of the project's objectives was to build a ship from that time period, sail it, and rekindle that history for future generations. "The Ministry of Culture was very kind to support it, and the Navy took up the project. And, here we are, in Muscat," he added.

'Geostrategic takeaways'

"Oman is an old friend. We have been trading with them for the last 5000 years. And, this voyage was announced about 2 years ago, when His Majesty, the Sultan of Oman, visited India. It was mentioned in his joint statement with the Honourable Prime Minister of India. We are fulfilling that promise," Sanyal said, when asked about the geostrategic objective behind the project, if any.

A tripartite agreement was signed in July 2023 between the Ministry of Culture, the Indian Navy, and Hodi Innovations, a Goa-based private boat builder, with funding from the Ministry of Culture. Following the keel laying in September 2023, the vessel's construction was undertaken using a traditional stitching method by a team of skilled artisans from Kerala, led by master shipwright Babu Sankaran.

Named after Kaundinya, the legendary first-century Indian mariner who sailed across the Indian Ocean to the Mekong Delta, where he married a Cambodian princess, the ship serves as a tangible symbol of India's long-standing traditions of maritime exploration, trade, and cultural exchange. Over several months, the team painstakingly stitched wooden planks on the ship's hull using coir rope, coconut fibre and natural resin. The ship was launched in February 2025 at Goa.

Also read: No Steel, No Welding – Know All About INSV Kaundinya, Built Using 2,000-Year-Old Stitched Ship Technique