India Monitors 4,500 Seafarers Amid Rising Gulf Maritime Threats
The Indian government is monitoring 4,500 seafarers in the Persian Gulf following repeated attacks on commercial shipping in global maritime corridors.
The Ministry of External Affairs of India is monitoring more than 4,500 Indian seafarers operating in the Persian Gulf. This surveillance includes 163 crew members aboard 12 commercial vessels—six India-flagged and six foreign-flagged ships carrying cargo to India—currently transiting west of the Strait of Hormuz.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar condemned repeated attacks on commercial shipping in the Gulf, Red Sea, and Black Sea. He noted that several Indian sailors have been killed or gone missing in recent incidents involving the MV CAPE DAO, EL GAIA, MV OMORFI, and MV GOLDEN LEO. To mitigate these risks, India and Liberia established the Group of Friends on Safety and Security of Shipping and Seafarers.
Additionally, the two nations proposed a Seafarers Emergency Support Network to improve distress alerts and evacuations. The Ministry of Shipping and Indian embassies continue to conduct surveillance to ensure crew welfare as maritime threats persist in critical international waterways.
