Indian Chief of Naval staff Admiral Sureesh Mehta has commisioned a naval air station, INS Parundu, and said it would play an important role in monitoring the sea in South India.

The station would ensure the safety of the country, the economy, and will also fill the capability gap in air surveillance and monitoring. A similar air station had been commissioned recently at Mumbai. The Uchipili station would have three Dornier aircraft and Chetak helicopters for the surveillance. and air cover will also be provided to offshore installations in the region as well. An Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) squadron will soon be based at INS Parundu permanently, he said. The station will be under the control of the Eastern Naval command.