India stays among top Strait of Hormuz users as 8 vessels transit amid Iran chokehold

India-linked vessels to have crossed Hormuz since Feb 28 include Shivalik, Nanda Devi, Jag Laadki, Pine Gas, Jag Vasant, BW Tyr, BW Elm and Green Sanvi

Updated on: Apr 4, 2026, 14:04:32 IST

By Shishir Gupta

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India has maintained steady maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz despite ongoing tensions in the region, with at least eight Indian-linked vessels transiting the critical chokepoint since February 28 – the day the US-Israeli strikes on Iran triggered a full-scale war.

A cargo ship in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance (REUTERS/File)

The vessels include Shivalik, Nanda Devi, Jag Laadki, Pine Gas, Jag Vasant, BW Tyr, BW Elm and Green Sanvi, helping energy security in India and keeping supplies coming for the common man.

The Strait of Hormuz, located between Iran and Oman, is one of the world's most vital oil transit corridors, through which 20 per cent share of global crude shipments passes.

India is among the countries with the highest number of vessels passing through the strait, reflecting its dependence on energy imports from the Gulf region.

Iran has, amid the war, listed India among friendly nations whose ships it is allowing to cross through the vital strait while keeping others halted with threats of drone-missile attack.

Iran told India: 'You are in safe hands'

In a related development on April 2, Iran reassured India about the safety of its interests in Hormuz amid escalating tensions in the Gulf region, issuing a message on social media.

Also Read: 'Only India lost mariners': Govt amid Strait of Hormuz blockade, Iran-US war

In a post on X, Iran’s official handle in India said, "Our Indian friends are in safe hands, no worries.” A similar message was shared by the Iranian embassy in Saudi Arabia, which asserted that “only Iran and Oman will decide the future of the Strait of Hormuz,” adding, “You are in safe hands, no worries”.

India-flagged large gas carrier Green Sanvi is the latest ship which has safely transited the Hormuz on Friday night, carrying around 46,650 metric tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), official sources said.

Earlier, on March 28, a shipment of 47,000 metric tonnes of LPG arrived at the Vadinar terminal of DPA Kandla in Jamnagar, Gujarat. The vessel MT Jag Vasant is now set to transfer its cargo to another ship at anchorage through a ship-to-ship (STS) operation.

Meanwhile, Additional secretary in the ministry of ports, shipping and waterways, Mukesh Mangal said all Indian vessels and crew in the Persian Gulf are being closely monitored, adding that all seafarers in the region are safe.

He said 18 Indian vessels with around 485 seafarers are currently in the region, while over 964 seafarers have been repatriated so far. Ports across India continue to operate normally, Mangal added.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shishir Gupta
Shishir Gupta is Executive Editor at Hindustan Times and one of India's top journalists covering national security, strategic affairs, foreign policy and geopolitics. Over the past three decades, he has extensively reported on India's military, diplomatic and security landscape, covering every major conflict and national security challenge, from the 1999 Kargil War and the 2020 East Ladakh standoff to Operation Sindoor in 2025. He has also covered major terror attacks, including the IC-814 hijacking, the 26/11 Mumbai attacks and the 2025 Pahalgam terror strike, along with numerous Pakistan-backed terrorist incidents in the Kashmir Valley and across India. He has reported on national and state elections for more than three decades. A recognised authority on strategic affairs, Gupta has covered India's nuclear programme since the Pokhran-II (Shakti series) tests in May 1998 and has written extensively on global nuclear issues, Indian diplomacy and the country's expanding global outreach. He has also reported widely on international conflicts and terrorism, with a special focus on the Indian subcontinent. Gupta has interviewed Prime Minister Narendra Modi more than four times, including Modi's first interview with the print media after becoming Prime Minister in May 2014. His other interviews include three with the Dalai Lama, as well as conversations with Benjamin Netanyahu, Amit Shah, Yogi Adityanath, S. Jaishankar, Nirmala Sitharaman and Piyush Goyal. He is the author of Indian Mujahideen: The Enemy Within (Hachette, 2011) and Himalayan Face-off: Chinese Assertion and Indian Riposte (Hachette, 2014). He was awarded the Chevening-Wolfson Joint Scholarship at Wolfson College, University of Cambridge, UK, in 1998 and participated in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) of the US State Department in 2006. He received the Ben Gurion Prize from Israel in 2011 and the K. Subrahmanyam Prize for Strategic Studies in 2015 from the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA). Since 2024, he has hosted Point Blank, Hindustan Times' weekly YouTube show on global geopolitics.Read More

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