India has instructed shipowners, ship managers, and recruitment agencies to refrain from assigning the country’s seafarers to vessels traveling through the Strait of Hormuz, following a resurgence of conflict in the area.
Government data indicates that India ranks as the third-largest source of seafarers worldwide, with over 300,000 Indian sailors serving on international shipping fleets.
The Directorate General of Shipping, in an order issued late Wednesday, stated that Indian seafarers are not to be deployed on vessels traveling through the Strait of Hormuz until further notice.
Two Indian seafarers have been killed in attacks on ships in the region over the past three days, amid rising tensions in the Middle East, with earlier incidents having already claimed multiple lives since the start of West Asia crisis.
Recent assaults on vessels have "significantly" heightened the dangers for seafarers and commercial ships operating in the conflict-hit area, the shipping regulator stated.
Given the escalating security conditions in the Persian Gulf region, the Directorate deems it essential to implement strengthened precautionary measures to protect the interests of Indian seafarers working on vessels operating in the area, the order stated.
It further instructed ship masters to remain highly alert to security conditions in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and nearby waters, and emphasized the need for constant monitoring of navigational warnings.
On Tuesday, New Delhi also issued a strong protest to Iran, summoning its deputy ambassador in connection with one of the deaths.
Over 15,000 Indian seafarers remain stranded to the west of the Strait of Hormuz, according to Manoj Yadav, general secretary of the Forward Seamen's Union of India.
