Shivalik, an Indian-flagged LPG provider with a cargo-carrying capability of greater than 54,000 tonnes, has crossed the Strait of Hormuz as on Friday night time (March 13, 2026), in line with marinetraffic.com, an internet portal that tracks service provider ships motion.
As per the web site, the ship had departed from Ras Laffan, Qatar, on March 7 and was initially destined for the U.S. The Indian Navy has denied stories that the Shivalik is being guided by naval vessels.
The LPG provider is owned by the Shipping Corporation of India. Built in 2008, its first proprietor was Qatar Shipping Co. The SCI is the ship’s fifth proprietor, as per the transport database equasis.com.
The Shivalik’s 55,000 tonnes of cargo may quantity to practically one day of India’s LPG imports. The Shivalik and the Sahyadri, one other LPG provider, have been inducted into the SCI’s fleet in August-September of 2025. The Shivalik was among the many 24 ships that have been stranded upstream of Strait of Hormuz for the reason that battle began on February 28. The Sahyadri is at current positioned on the west coast of India.
Earlier at a briefing on Friday (March 13, 2026), a senior authorities official stated that of the 28 Indian-flagged ships within the Persian Gulf-Gulf of Oman area that had stopped transferring with the beginning of the West Asia battle on February 28, one oil tanker certain for Africa, Jag Prakash, had began transferring.
The Jag Prakash, an oil merchandise tanker with a carrying capability of 48,000 tonnes cargo and owned by Great Eastern Shipping Company, was among the many 4 ships stranded east of the Strait of Hormuz. This implies that, in contrast to the Shivalik, it didn’t need to cross the strait that the newly elected Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has stated should stay closed. The Jag Prakash loaded at Sohar port in Oman, and its unique vacation spot was Tanzania.
Three extra Indian-flagged cargo ships with 76 seafarers aboard are nonetheless positioned within the Gulf of Oman, whereas the 23 ships contained in the Persian Gulf west of the Strait of Hormuz proceed to stay stranded, in line with officers.
Shipping business leaders have been anticipating reduction and indications from the federal government advising ships to transfer at sea after Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on March 12. But the federal government had stated the identical day that it was untimely to count on Iran to permit Indian ships to cross the strait.
At a media briefing on Friday (March 13, 2026), Rajesh Kumar Sinha, Special Secretary, Shipping and Waterways Ministry, stated there have been 23,000 Indian nationals working within the Persian Gulf area on service provider ships, ports, and offshore vessels. The Directorate General of Shipping was in fixed contact with them and all related stakeholders, he stated.
Four Indian sailors have been killed in assaults for the reason that starting of the conflict. On March 11, an Indian seafarer was killed when his ship, Safesea Vishnu, was attacked close to Basra, Iraq, in what has been described as a suicide mission. The remaining 15 Indian crew members are reported to be protected. The homeowners of the vessel are based mostly in New Jersey, U.S., and the ship carries the flag of Marshall Island, however the vessel is managed by Bravo Ship Management based mostly in Chennai, India.
Strait of Hormuz must remain closed, says Iran’s new leader
In the crosshairs
Crossing the risky strait carries dangers that shippers are unwilling to bear. When the battle began, some 600 ships have been reportedly stranded within the area due to concern of assaults.
Shenlong, the crude oil provider carrying a million barrels of oil that docked in Mumbai on Wednesday (March 11), had crossed the strait on March 8. Reports have described the perilous journey it undertook to cross the strait in a area the place GPS spoofing and jamming are generally deployed as conflict instruments. Such measures can confuse ships by giving false places. The ship had apparently gone into “digital darkness” and used guide navigation to soundly cross the strait.
When outfitted with the Automatic Identification System (AIS) that identifies the vessel and might make the ship straightforward to trace, it places the carriers in peril of assaults, says Richard Meade, editor-in-chief of Lloyd’s List, a maritime data journal. “We have observed 77 transits across the Strait of Hormuz since March 1, half of whom were ‘shadow fleet’. Iranian ships carrying fuels continue to cross the strait. Seventeen were ‘dark transits’, which means the AIS of the ship was switched off, and some of them were mainstream fleet vessels such as Shenlong,” he stated.
Though it could be anticipated that vessels affiliated with the U.S., Israel, and Europe can be focused by Iran, there was no sample within the 16 ships which have been attacked to date, he says. “This is unlike in the Red Sea where the Houthis targeted ships that had certain affiliations,” says Mr. Meade.
Exercise restraint
Meanwhile, the Union authorities has expressed concern over unverified stories about vessels working within the Gulf area and the Strait of Hormuz being circulated throughout social media and messaging platforms.
In an advisory, the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) stated the circulation of unconfirmed and speculative data was inflicting pointless anxiousness and misery amongst seafarers and their members of the family.
“Responsible communication will help prevent misinformation, reduce panic among seafarers and their families, and maintain confidence within the maritime community during this sensitive period,” the advisory issued a number of days in the past to maritime stakeholders and seafarers neighborhood stated.
The DGS urged all maritime stakeholders, transport corporations, worker unions and people to train restraint and duty whereas sharing data associated to maritime incidents or safety developments within the area.
It underlined the necessity to chorus from forwarding or publishing unverified data and be certain that solely authenticated updates from official sources and competent authorities have been disseminated.
“The Directorate General of Shipping continues to closely monitor the situation in coordination with relevant authorities and working together with stakeholders to ensure that only accurate and verified information reaches the seafarer community,” the advisory stated.
With inputs from Vijay Kumar
Published – March 14, 2026 12:51 am IST
