No permission required to sail via Strait of Hormuz, says govt official
Sailing via the Strait of Hormuz — the one sea channel linking the oil-rich Persian Gulf with open oceans — doesn’t require permission from any nation, a senior authorities official mentioned as extra Indian vessels ready to sail via the war-hit zone.
Rejecting talks of stranded Indian vessels in the Persian Gulf being allowed to sail via the strait solely after reaching some sort of an settlement with Iran, which controls the slender transport lane, Rajesh Kumar Sinha, Special Secretary on the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, mentioned the motion via strait is taken by transport corporations and their contracting entities after contemplating security and different circumstances.
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Movement of ships via the strait had come to a close to halt after the U.S. and Israel launched navy strikes in opposition to Iran, and Tehran’s sweeping retaliation that hit U.S. bases within the Gulf areas in addition to Israel.
“No permission is required to sail through the strait,” Mr. Sinha mentioned on the media briefing on the developments in West Asia.
Iran-Israel war updates on March 24, 2026
He was requested if New Delhi took permission or paid Iran for the motion of its stranded vessels, notably these laden with LPG — a commodity that has turn into scarce within the nation following the warfare.
The strait is roofed by worldwide navigation conventions, he mentioned. “There is freedom for navigation through the strait.
Since the strait is narrow, only the entry and exit lanes are demarked which need to be followed by shipping lines.
“The choice to sail [through the strait] is taken between the transport firm and the one which has chartered the ship… it’s the choice of the charterer and transport firm when to sail or when to not sail,” he said. “Since these are particular circumstances, they assess the scenario with regard to security, and so forth., earlier than deciding. No permission is required.” Two more Indian-flagged LPG tankers, carrying about a day’s supply of the country’s cooking gas, on Monday crossed the war-hit Strait of Hormuz and are expected to reach Indian shores on March 26/27.
LPG tankers Pine Gas is carrying about 45,000 tonnes of LPG, and it is scheduled to reach New Mangalore port on March 27, while Jag Vasant with 47,612 tonnes of LPG will reach Kandla in Gujarat on March 26, he said.
The two ships, carrying 92,612 tonnes of LPG, have 33 and 27 Indian seafarers onboard.
Both LPG tankers sailed through waters between Iran’s Larak and Qeshm islands — possibly to make their identity clear to Iranian authorities before they cross the strait, ship tracking data showed.
The two ships were among the 22 Indian flagged vessels that were stranded in the Persian Gulf after the war in West Asia nearly closed the Strait of Hormuz.
Previously, MT Shivalik and MT Nanda Devi, carrying about 92,712 tonnes of LPG, had safely reached the Indian shore.
Originally, there were 28 Indian-flagged vessels in the Strait of Hormuz when the war in West Asia broke out following US-Israel attacks on Iran. Of these, 24 were on the West side of the Strait and four on the East side. In the last few days, two vessels from each side have managed to sail to safety.
LPG carrier Shivalik reached Mundra in Gujarat on March 16, while another LPG tanker, Nanda Devi, reached Kandla port in Gujarat the next day. Two LPG carriers had started their journey on March 13 and crossed the Strait of Hormuz early on March 14.
Indian-flagged oil tanker Jag Laadki, with 80,886 tonnes of crude oil from the UAE, reached Mundra on March 18. Another tanker, Jag Prakash, carrying gasoline from Oman to Africa, had previously safely crossed the strait and is en route to Tanzania.
Of the 22 remaining Indian-flagged vessels in the war zone, 20 are on the West side of the Strait with 540 seafarers onboard, while two are on the East side.
The vessels stranded on the west side of the strait include five LPG carriers with about 2.3 lakh tonnes of cooking gas, he said, adding another empty vessel has started loading LPG.
Besides, one liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker, four crude oil tankers, one transporting chemical products, three container ships, two bulk carriers and three were in dry dock undergoing routine maintenance.
He said that while the LNG ship is chartered by Petronet LNG Ltd, the LPG carriers have been hired by oil marketing companies, primarily Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL). The crude oil tankers have been chartered by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Reliance Industries Ltd and BGN International.
Overall, close to 500 tanker vessels remain confined within the Persian (Arabian) Gulf. These include 108 crude oil tankers, 166 oil product tankers, 104 chemical/product tankers, 52 chemical tankers and 53 other tanker types.
Analysts say Iran may be allowing select vessels to transit the strait after verification. A few vessels have transited outbound through the strait with a short diversion via the Larak-Qeshm Channel.
This, they are saying, seems to be a verification course of whereby Iran confirms the possession, cargo and vessel usually are not of the US, or belong to those who Iran has permitted transit to.
India imports about 88% of its crude oil, 50% of pure fuel, and 60% of LPG. Before the warfare broke out, greater than half of the crude oil that India imported got here from nations like Saudi Arabia, Iraq and the UAE, which use the strait for transport.
As a lot as 85-95 per cent of LPG and 30 per cent of pure fuel got here via the strait. While the disruption in crude oil has been partially offset via various sources, reminiscent of Russia, West Africa, the U.S. and Latin America, fuel and LPG provides to industrial and business customers have been curtailed.