INHS Asvini

Indian Naval Hospital Ship Asvini
Aerial view of INHS Asvini
Founded	18 September 1951
Country	India
Branch	Indian Navy
Type	Hospital
Role	Militarized healthcare
Part of	Western Naval Command Armed Forces Medical Services
Nickname(s)	INHS Asvini
Motto(s)	Caring and Curing
Commanders
Current commander	Rear Admiral Manish Honwad VSM

The INHS Asvini is a hospital of the Indian Navy in Mumbai. With 825 beds, the tertiary care institution is the oldest and largest hospital of the Indian Navy. Established as the King's Seamen Hospital in 1756, it was christened INHS Asvini in 1951 and accorded the status of a Command Hospital in 1977.

History

In 1756, the King’s Seamen Hospital started functioning in the naval barracks for in-patients in Colaba. The hospital was converted into a convalescent home in 1766. In 1860, the Hawa Mahal was built as the main ward of the hospital. It was transferred to the Indian Army when Her Majesty's Indian Navy was transitioned into the Bombay Marine. Under the Army, the Military Hospital, Colaba was expanded over the next century, including the addition of a family hospital in 1929. ^[1]

On 18 September 1951, the Indian Army handed the hospital over to the Indian Navy and the establishment was commissioned as INHS Asvini. In July 1954, the sick berth school was established, followed by the Naval Dental Centre in 1961. The School of Nursing was set up in 1963. The sick berth school was renamed School of Medical Assistants (SOMA) in 1967. ^[2] By 1966, Asvini was a 600-bedded hospital and further expanded to become an 825-bedded hospital in January 1977 when it was classified as a Command Hospital. ^[3]

The Institute of Naval Medicine (INM) was established in 1964 as the Naval Medical Research and Training Centre (NMRTC) and renamed INM in 1974. It is the nodal agency to coordinate all the research projects of the Navy in the Armed Forces Medical Research Committee (AFMRC) and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). INM was placed under Asvini in 2004. ^[2]

Crest

The hospital has been named after the mythological twin brothers, the Ashvini Kumaras, Celestial Physicians of the gods. The creast of INHS Asvini has the two Asvini brothers riding in their traditional horse cart holding medicine pots in their hands. ^{[4] [5]}

Today

Today, Asvini is equipped with latest state-of-the-art medical facilities to provide holistic and comprehensive secondary and tertiary care to serving personnel, veterans and their families. It also acts as a referral centre to peripheral hospitals located in Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat area. As a major military hospital, it renders the facilities of a super-speciality hospital with care-units in diverse fields of need. ^[6] Asvini has been awarded the Defence Minister’s trophy for the Best Command Hospital in 2005, 2010, 2012, 2016 and 2024. ^{[7] [8] [9] [10]}

Organisation

The hospital is headed by the Commanding Officer, a two-star officer of the rank of Rear Admiral. On 31 January 2021, in a rare event of a change of command between two women flag officers, she took over from Surgeon Rear Admiral Sheila S. Mathai. ^[11]

See also

• List of Armed Forces Hospitals In India
• Armed Forces Medical Services

References

1. "INHS Asvini: The Cutting Edge of Medical Sciences | Maritime History Society (MHS India)". mhsindia.org. Retrieved 8 September 2025.
2. Singh 2018.
3. "INHS Asvini | Indian Navy". www.indiannavy.nic.in. Retrieved 8 September 2025.
4. Babu 2023. sfn error: no target: CITEREFBabu2023 (help)
5. "INHS Asvini". nhims.bisag-n.gov.in. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
6. "INHS Asvini: The Cutting Edge of Medical Sciences | Maritime History Society (MHS India)". mhsindia.org. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
7. "INHS ASVINI Mumbai adjudged best AFMS Hospital". The Times of India. 2 March 2017. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
8. "INHS Asvini among top defence hospitals". The Hindu. 19 February 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
9. "Mumbai's INHS Asvini is Best Command Hospital of armed forces". business-standard.com. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
10. Service, Statesman News (3 April 2025). "INHS Asvini, Command Hospital Chandimandir bag trophy for best hospital in AFMS 2024". The Statesman. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
11. "Surgeon Rear Admiral Arti Sarin takes over command Of INHS Asvini". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 14 October 2022.

Bibliography

• Singh, Anup (2018), Blue Waters Ahoy!: The Indian Navy 2001-2010, HarperCollins Publishers India, ISBN   978-9353025526
• Dorai, Babu (2023), A Decade of Transformation: The Indian Navy 2011-2021, HarperCollins Publishers India, ISBN   978-9394407909