Context:  

An anti-piracy operation off the East Coast of Somalia was conducted by INS Sumitra recently.

INS Sumitra Carries Out Rescue and Anti Piracy Operations

• Rescue operation: INS Sumitra, in less than 36 hours, has rescued two hijacked Fishing Vessels along with 36 Crew (17 Iranian and 19 Pakistani) in Southern Arabian Sea approximately 850 nm West of Kochi
• Significance: It prevented  misuse of these Fishing Vessels as Mother Ships for further acts of Piracy on Merchant Vessels.
• INS Sumitra, Indian Navy’s indigenous Offshore Patrol Vessel had been deployed for Anti-Piracy and Maritime Security Operations East of Somalia and Gulf of Aden.
• The Indian Navy commenced anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden from October 2008.

Piracy in Indian Ocean

• Resurgence:  A rise in piracy attacks is witnessed with  the first successful case of Somali piracy since 2017 recorded in December 2023
  • Reason:  Israel-Hamas War: A  separate surge of attacks launched by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the Red sea and Gulf of Aden against Israeli-linked vessels
  • Security gap: International naval forces have been diverted north from the Gulf of Aden into the Red Sea, creating a security gap in the region.

Concern for India

• Trade: The Ministry of Shipping estimates that Indian imports through the Gulf of Aden route was valued at around $50 billion and exports at $60 billion  accounting  for only 13 per cent of India’s trade
• Indian crew:  India’s large seafaring community accounts for 6-7 percent of the world’s seafarers; the crew of several foreign vessels is Indian.

News Source: PIB