New Delhi [India]: Indian Navy chief Admiral R Hari Kumar has issued directions to take all possible actions to enhance security in the Arabian Sea region, officials said on Sunday.
As per officials, the Indian Navy chief has asked to keep a close lookout for any suspicious activity in the region, which saw incidents of attacks on merchant vessels recently.
He further directed to carry out thorough checks on the suspicious boats to ensure the safety of our merchant vessels and mariners, they added.
The directions from the Navy Chief comes amid recent attacks on cargo ships in the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Central Arabia Sea. The vessels that came under attack included the India-bound MV Chem Pluto, which was carrying 21 Indians onboard.
However, the vessel was later escorted by Indian Coast Guard Ship Vikram to the Mumbai coast.
While the MV Chem Pluto was attacked on December 23, another ship, MV Ruen, was hijacked in the Arabian Sea on December 14.
Meanwhile, as per officials, Navy has deployed task groups comprising warships — ‘destroyers’ and ‘frigates’ — to have a complete maritime domain awareness in the region.
“The piracy incident on MV Ruen approximately 700 nautical miles from the Indian coast and recent drone attack on MV Chem Pluto, approximately 220 nautical miles South-West of Porbandar indicates a shift in maritime incidents closer to Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ),” a Navy official said.
“Task Groups comprising destroyers and frigates have been deployed to undertake maritime security operations and render assistance to merchant vessels in case of any incident. Aerial surveillance by long-range maritime patrol aircraft and RPAs has been enhanced to have a complete maritime domain awareness. Towards effective surveillance of EEZ, Indian Navy is operating in close coordination with Indian Coast Guard,” he added.
“The overall situation is being closely monitored by Indian Navy in coordination with national maritime agencies. The Indian Navy remains committed to ensuring safety of merchant shipping in the region,” he said further.
