The Indian Coast Guard ship Arush, the 17th in the series of 20 fast patrol vessels (FPVs), designed and built by Cochin Shipyard Limited, was commissioned at Kochi by the Coast Guard Commander (Western Seaboard) Additional Director General S.P.S. Basra. Basra termed the FPVs as the workhorses of Coast Guard. The flag officer also dwelt upon the fast paced development of the Indian Coast Guard and acknowledged its efforts to face the emerging security challenges in the maritime domain. He emphasised the importance of coastal security in view of the asymmetric threats from the sea and emphasised synergy in cooperation amongst all stakeholders to ensure maritime safety in face of nefarious designs. Indian Coast Guard will be a 150 ships/boats and 100 aircraft maritime force in next few years. In addition to these operational assets, a coastal surveillance network is being established with 46 stations to ensure real-time coastal surveillance.

The ship has been named ICGS Arush, literally meaning ‘First Ray of Sun’, and will be based at Porbandar under the administrative and operational control of the Commander, Coast Guard Region (North West). The ship is commanded by Commandant Pramod Pokhriyal and has complement of four officers and 33 enrolled personnel.