(a) whether the Government has evolvedany action plan to secure the release ofcaptive Indian
sailors from civil war ravagedin Somalia;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) if not, the reasons therefor; and
(d) the concrete strategy initiated/proposed to be taken by the Government inthis regard?
MINISTER OF SHIPPING (SHRI G.K.VASAN)
(a)to(d): An Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) set up by the Government under the Ministry of
Shipping with representatives from all Ministries and Government agencies concerned, to
deal with the hostage situation arising out of the hijacking at sea of merchant vessels
with Indian crew on board has been regularly reviewing the situation of Indian hostages
under captivity of the pirates. Ministry of External Affairs, through its concerned
Missions abroad, continuously seeks the help of the concerned foreign Governments to liaise
with ship owners to secure early release of Indian hostages held captive by Somalia pirates.
Government has also approved the Contingency Plan for dealing with piracy and hijacking of
merchant ships and constituted a Committee of Secretaries on Anti-Piracy and hijack at sea
(COSAPH) under the Chairmanship of Cabinet Secretary for crisis management and to advise the
Government on major policy and strategy decisions. In addition to this, the following steps
have been initiated by Ministry of Shipping as part of various preventing/mitigating security
measures to secure the release of the Indian hostages from the pirates:
i) M.S. Notice No.1 of 2011 issued providing for elaborate anti-piracy measures (Best
Management Practices), including safe house/citadel.
ii) Banning of sailing vessels to ply in waters south or west of the line joining Salalah
and Male vide DGS M.S.Notice No. 3/2010.
iii) Naval escort provided by Indian naval ships in the Gulf of Aden since 2008.
iv) Enhanced vigil by the Indian Navy in the Indian EEZ and westward upto 65
degree east longitude.
v) Active participation of India in the security meetings of the International Maritime
Organization, Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS) and other
international fora.
vi) Submission of Document No.27/9/1 at the IMO Assembly meeting held at London on 21-30.11.2011
for flag states to provide information on the welfare of captive crew, efforts for their release
and also on continued payment of their wages.