Three Indian-flagged ships safely cross Hormuz (Representative photo)
NEW DELHI: Three Indian-flagged tankers – Desh Vaibhav, Desh Vibhor and Sanmar Herald – carrying 8.6 lakh tonne of crude oil, crossed Strait of Hormuz safely Saturday. This was the highest number of Indian ships to tr-ansit the strategic waterway in a single day since the war in West Asia broke out Feb 28.With this, 18 India-bound ships – 13 Indian and five foreign-flagged – vessels have crossed the route. Shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal said the three ships have 94 Indian crew members and “govt is working on highest priority to secure India’s maritime interests and to guarantee safety of seafarers and energy lifelines”. Sanmar Herald was atta-cked by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on April 18 during its previous attempt to transit the strait after reportedly getting the go ahead. Now it’s scheduled to reach Paradip port on July 1, a shipping ministry official said.The ships have sailed through the Strait after the United States officially ended blockade of Iranian ports and Tehran eased restrictions on movements of vessels following the peace deal. Ship tracking portal Marinetraffic shows another two India-bound ships – container carrier SSL Kaveri and crude carrier Desh Suraksha – were waiting around the strait. A total of 31 India-bound ships are still stuck in Persian Gulf, including 16 loaded with fertiliser.Officials said that Desh Vaibhav is scheduled to reach Vadinar in Gujarat on June 24. Desh Vibhor’s next port of call is Sikka in Gujarat, where it estimated to arrive on June 24. “We are hopeful of India-bound ships safely transiting the strait. That will bring huge relief to hundreds of our seafarers who have been stuck for over three months,” said an official.The movement of ships in the region and the Strait has increased since the two sides announced the peace deal. On Thursday alone, 25 commercial vessels had crossed the reopened Strait of Hormuz, which was the highest number since mid-April.
