A group of sailors taken hostage by Somali pirates nearly two years ago have appealed to the government to get them released from captivity.
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.
The Centre on Friday said that the Indian Navy had 'coordinated' with other navies operating in the piracy-affected region to provide security cover to MV Suez, the Egyptian merchant vessel with six Indian nationals, which was released by Somali pirates four days ago. "The Navy coordinated with other navies in the region so that security cover could be provided to MV Suez, the ship which was released by pirates recently.
After four days of hectic negotiations, two Naval guards of an Italian merchant vessel were taken into custody in Kochi on Sunday and charged with murder in the killing of two Indian fishermen during a firing on their boat off the Kerala coast.
Fifteen Somali and Ethiopian pirates apprehended by the Indian Navy after a gunbattle off the Lakshadweep coast while trying to loot a foreign merchant vessel were on Monday placed under arrest and would face the Indian law for the first time.
The Indian Navy has swiftly responded to a call for help following a hijacking incident involving a Malta-flagged cargo vessel with 18 crew on board in the Arabian Sea, officials said on Saturday.
A local court on Wednesday granted interim bail to the captain of merchant vessel MSC Chitra, which collided with another cargo ship off Mumbai's coast on Saturday, after the prosecution sought time to file a reply on his anticipatory bail plea.The captain, Mandeleno Ranjit Martin, had sought bail after an FIR was registered against him.The prosecution sought time till August 18 to file their reply on the bail plea.
The 22 crew members, including six Indians, of Egyptian merchant vessel MV Suez will reach Karachi before being sent back to their respective countries, Pakistani human rights activist Ansar Burney has said. Burney, who has played a pivotal role in securing the release of the crew, hoped the return of the Indian sailors would be a "gift" to India. Besides the six Indians, there are five Pakistanis and one Sri Lankan among the crew.
Naval divers on Sunday recovered the body of one of the three fishermen who went missing after their boat was hit by a merchant vessel of Alappuzha coast.
The Indian Navy rescued 26 people, including 11 Indians on-board a sinking merchant vessel with the help of an Italian warship after they were released by Somali pirates following a ransom payment. After being in captivity in Somalia since April last year, MV RAK Africana, a ship owned by captain Ajay Kotwal, could not sail out of the Somali coast on March 9 because of engine problems, Navy officials said.
The Indian Navy is keeping a close eye on Iranian merchant vessel MV Assa, anchored for over a month off the coast of Kerala.
The $22.8 billion CK Hutchison ports deal intensifies geopolitical tensions between the US and China. Chinese media has already called it 'a betrayal of all Chinese people'. Shyam G Menon explains how the proposed sale will reshapes global trade infrastructure.
Taking serious note of the incident where a merchant vessel M V Pavit ran aground at Mumbai coast on Sunday, Defence Minister A K Antony has asked Navy and Indian Coast Guard to submit a report as to how the abandoned ship entered Indian waters undetected.
The MV Suez's 22-member crew, including six Indians, were on Sunday transferred to a Pakistani warship when the Egyptian merchant vessel, which was recently released by Somali pirates after payment of ransom, began taking on water in the Arabian Sea.
The Indian Navy, which regards itself as the 'net security provider' in the Indian Ocean Region, has also stepped up to the plate, with a warship stationed at all times off the Gulf of Aden for counter-piracy tasks. 91 Indian warships have been deployed in the region since 2008, patrolling high risk areas where piracy was rampant.
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.
Searching for terrorists, Indian Coast Guard ships are now stopping all merchant vessels and ships moving towards Pakistan and Gulf region and carrying out checks inside them.
Indian Navy spokesperson on Wednesday said its stealth frigate INS Tabar, currently deployed in the Gulf of Aden for anti-piracy surveillance and patrol operations, had successfully sorted out the pirates last evening 285 nautical miles south west of Salalah in Oman.
The Indian Navy said warships and aircraft were deployed to establish presence, provide a sense of reassurance to the Indian merchant men
"Since Saturday afternoon, the 12 Somali and 11 Yemeni pirates are kept in custody on board INS Mysore and they are being fed with the rations meant for sailors," Navy officials said in Delhi on Monday. "We have not received any instructions yet from the Defence Ministry or the External Affairs Ministry on what needs to be done with the pirates," they said
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.
"The Navy has already re-deployed a warship to the Gulf of Aden. The ship, which was in the region, was asked to rush to the Gulf of Aden following the government orders," a naval officer said in New Delhi.
In July last year, a vessel collided with the Mumbai High platform, killing 26 people and destroying the platform.
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.
The government has asked Indian ships sailing in the Malacca Strait and South East Asia to be 'extra cautious' and take necessary security steps in view of rising incidents of hijacking and robbery
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.
Nearly 400 migrants died in an attempt to reach Italy from Libya when their boat capsized, survivors said.
An Indian national, believed to have been injured in a bomb blast in Yemen's Aden, has succumbed to his injuries, defence sources said on Friday.
With the revision of the HRA, which was extended to include the west coast of India in 2010, some of the country's maritime security concerns like floating armouries and proliferation of private security are likely to be addressed, the Navy said.
'If attacks escalate, there is a risk the Suez Canal may be closed.'
Many countries including the United States and France have offered help to India in its ongoing operations to bring out bodies in the sunken submarine INS Sindhurakshak.
Lieutenant Commander Prerana Pravin Deosthalee will lead an all-male crew. She is currently the first lieutenant of INS Chennai, the missile destroyer that rescued a foreign merchant ship hijacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia last week.
Engagement with neighbours is a strategic imperative, and not an option, asserts Rup Narayan Das.
Access to Sabang Port will allow the Indian Navy to dominate Malacca Strait more effectively, reports Ajai Shukla.
This is the first cyclone in the Bay of Bengal this pre-monsoon season.
A deep depression over the Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm, named Remal, on Saturday evening and is likely to turn severe before making landfall between the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh on Sunday midnight, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said.
Foreign minister Ali Sabry told the cabinet that the Chinese vessel had only asked for a refuelling visit.
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.
Sri Lanka's Hambantota Port authorities said the high-tech Chinese research vessel that was to dock there on Thursday won't reach the port as scheduled, according to a media report, days after India expressed security concerns over its presence in the island nation.
