Rediff reader Purnendu Shorey, 48, a former captain in merchant navy based out of Mumbai shares some of his learnings.
Unregulated floating private armouries carrying combatants of certain countries are a matter of concern and can have serious security implications for the country including infiltration of terrorists that can lead to 26/11-type attacks, Navy Chief Admiral DK Joshi warned on Tuesday.
In July last year, a vessel collided with the Mumbai High platform, killing 26 people and destroying the platform.
In a strong display of its prowess in the global fight against the menace of piracy threatening maritime trade near Horn of Africa, Indian Navy's guided missile destroyer INS Mysore repulsed the pirate attack on Ethiopian flag-bearing MV Gibe that was sailing 150 nautical miles off Aden in Yemen around noon, a Navy spokesperson said in New Delhi.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh each on the six persons sentenced to 20-year imprisonment, out of the eight crew members who were on board the merchant vessel 'Henry'.
Three piracy attempts in last four days in the Gulf of Aden have been thwarted by the Indian Navy which neutralised eight armed Somali pirates, navy officials said on Monday.
Fire-fighters, along with Navy personnel, are battling a major blaze to salvage warship INS Vindhyagiri, which is listing after colliding with a merchant vessel at the Mumbai harbour. "The fire broke out soon after the ship collided with another vessel on Sunday evening. The Mumbai fire brigade was alerted early on Monday," fire brigade sources said. There is nobody on board the warship as everybody was evacuated on Sunday evening.
At about 6 am on Thursday, about 450 nautical miles off West of Mumbai, a merchant ship MV BBC Orinoco with a crew of 14 members, including five Ukrainians and nine Filipinos, reported being attacked by pirates.
The world needs to wake up to this new dimension of war at sea and be prepared to face the 'unknown enemy' who have the advantage of attacking at their choice of location and time, cautions Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Five days after it broke free from its tow and ran aground at the Juhu beach, efforts began on Thursday to salvage freighter MV Wisdom with Naval helicopters pressed into service.
The navy launched a SeaKing chopper at 7:58 am from INS Shikra, Colaba, while CG launched two Chetak helicopters at around 8:40 am for the rescue operation.
US central command said that several US personnel are undergoing evaluation for "traumatic brain injuries" and at least one Iraqi service member was wounded in the attack.
An Indian-flagged crude oil tanker is among two vessels that came under drone attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels in the Southern Red Sea, the United States Central Command has said.
Three passengers, including a British national of Goan-origin, who arrived at the international airport near here on a flight from the United Kingdom on early Friday, tested positive for COVID-19, state Health Minister Vishwajit Rane said.
Days after the brush off incident between their warships in the Gulf of Aden, Indian Navy on Friday said Pakistani ship PNS Babur had damaged a part of INS Godavari by moving too close to it.
In the general euphoria surrounding the safe return of the Stolt Valor and its crew we tend to forget some of the more disturbing aspects of the incident.
She will be the first woman to receive the International Maritime Organisation Award for Exceptional Bravery at Sea for her dramatic rescue.
Suspected pirates on Thursday attempted to hijack an Indian ship in the Gulf of Aden, but were apprehended by a United States missile cruiser, which 'quickly' responded to the merchant vessel's distress call. The Indian-flagged Motor Vessel Premdivya sent a distress call reporting that she had been fired by a small skiff and suspected pirates were attempting to board it. The guided missile cruiser Vella Gulf intercepted the call and navy copter signaled for the skiff to stop
'An area of land has already been earmarked for their protected habitation.' 'There are also steps being taken to take care of the coral zone and mangroves.'
The government will chart out a plan for the evacuation of seafarers stuck on international waters amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Union Minister Mansukh L Mandaviya has said. Thousands of Indian seafarers are currently stuck aboard cruise ships and cargo vessels in far off waters, and maritime bodies have been demanding from the government strategies for bringing them home fearing that delays might result in disruption in supply chain.
India's historical focus on its continental borders has overshadowed its maritime ambitions, but that is changing quickly, notes Ajai Shukla.
As severe cyclonic storm 'Remal' initiated its landfall process between the coasts of Bangladesh and adjoining West Bengal on Sunday evening, authorities took swift action, evacuating over 1 lakh people from vulnerable areas of the state to safety.
"We are the government. The Navy and the Defence Ministry are not the government," he added.
The Indian Navy is keeping a close eye on Iranian merchant vessel MV Assa, anchored for over a month off the coast of Kerala.
Four navy personnel, including an officer, remained missing on Friday after a vessel sank off the Vishakhapatnam coast on Thursday night and a full scale search is underway to trace them besides.
Interest on NRE accounts is tax-free, but the I-T department creates hurdles to tax these accounts.
Engagement with neighbours is a strategic imperative, and not an option, asserts Rup Narayan Das.
India on Tuesday said it is in touch with Togo authorities to secure on compassionate ground the release of a jailed Indian sailor even as his family met the prime minister requesting his intervention to ensure the seaman is able to conduct the last rites of his 11-month-old son.
Pakistani ships in high seas can pose a jehadi threat, Navy Chief Admiral R K Dhowan today said, citing reports of an attempt by militants to hijack a Pakistan navy frigate in September. He said that threat of maritime terrorism is increasing and the force was prepared for it.
"Our principles of operation were very clear -- 'Indians First, Others later' and 'No Indians, No Rescue'. When many people approached us (for evacuation) we told them Indians would be rescued first," said Captain Pradeep Singh, Commanding Officer of INS Tarkash, one of the vessels deployed in the operation.
'China's moves are of direct significance to India, which will closely monitor Chinese naval activity in the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean not least because of Chinese maps depicting claims over the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.'
On the 25th anniversary of the battle that made his war cry 'Dil Maange More' part of national lore, we republish that feature to salute Captain Batra's ultimate sacrifice for the nation.
The Indian Navy said warships and aircraft were deployed to establish presence, provide a sense of reassurance to the Indian merchant men
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday held wide ranging discussions with Iranian counterpart Hossein Amirabdollahian in Tehran and their discussion focused on the long term framework for India's involvement with the strategically vital Chabahar port and the North-South connectivity project.
A day before the Tokyo-bound Indian shooting contingent hits the range for its first training session in Croatia, Manu Bhaker's pistol will give way to a pen and the shooting gear to her study materials, as she logs in for her BA fourth semester exam.
Half a century after he left school, A Ganesh Nadar attends a school reunion.
The coming together of the Quad and the Australia-UK-US grouping would be a formidable adversary, moving toward the creation of a 'thousand ship navy' that reins in the PLA navy in the Indo-Pacific.
'Not everybody gets the opportunity of having a working desk inside a helicopter from where you can control torpedoes and weapons.'
Indian charitable trusts, including Tata Trusts and top corporate donors, are stumped by a new tax law proposed in the Budget, which reduces tax breaks for the donor organisations. The Finance Bill proposes that if a charitable organisation donates to another charity, then only 85 per cent of the donation will be considered as application of income for the donor organisation. Trust officials say this is a major setback for the donor organisations, including corporate foundations and intermediary organisations, which work with various implementing agencies at the grassroots level.
A French Navy has rescued eleven Indian sailors from suspected pirates at the mouth of the Gulf of Aden. According to a media release of the Embassy of France in New Delhi, the rescue operation took place on January 18 off the coast of Oman.
