Confusion over presence of any Indian aboard hijacked ship

Director General of Shipping Lakshmi Venkatachalam said, "So far, there is no such information with us. However, we will help if there is any Indian in the vessel".

Capt M M Saggi, Nautical Advisor to Government of India, also told PTI that there was no information about any Indian aboard the ship.

However, a section of the media has reported that there were four Indians in the vessel.
The ship was seized by the pirates on October 15 in the Indian Ocean about 500 kilometers north of the Seychelles island.

Abdulgani Y Serang, General Secretary, National Union of Seafarers of India, said the crew members of the vessel were from countries like Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Pakistan.
"The shipping lines did not confirm any Indian crew on the vessel yet," he said.

Somalia has been ravaged by violence and anarchy since 1991 and piracy has flourished off its coast, making the Gulf of Aden one of the most dangerous waterways in the world.
Pirate attacks around the world have more than doubled to 240 during the first six months of 2009 compared with the same period last year.