Coast Guard rescues 12 Indian crew members of sunken ship with Pakistani agency's help

Ahmedabad: The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) with the help of their Pakistani counterpart has rescued 12 crew members of a merchant vessel which sank in the north Arabian sea while it was on its way to Iran's Bandar Abbas port from Porbandar.

The merchant vessel MSV Al Piranpir capsized about 270 km west of Dwarka within Pakistan's Search and Rescue Region, the ICG said in a statement. The search for survivors was supported by Pakistan's MSA aircraft and the merchant ship MV Cosco Glory.

After the boat sank on Wednesday morning due to rough seas and flooding, the 12 crew members took refuge in a small dinghy. The crew had sent a distress call which was received by ICG’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Mumbai, which alerted ICG Regional Headquarters (North West) in Gandhinagar.

The coast guard sent its ship Sarthak to the reported location. "MRCC Pakistan was also contacted to alert mariners in the area, and their assistance was swiftly provided," the ICG statement said.

The ICG said, "This humanitarian search and rescue mission saw close collaboration between the Indian Coast Guard and Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (MSA), with both nations' Maritime Rescue Coordination Centres (MRCCs) maintaining continuous communication throughout the operation."

Last month, the ICG had rescued seven Indian fishermen from the clutches of PMSA after a two-hour chase near India-Pakistan International Maritime Boundary off Porbandar coast. ICG had received a distress signal near the No-Fishing Zone on the International Maritime Boundary from an Indian fishing boat.

It had reported that another fishing boat, "Kal Bhairav" had been intercepted by the Pakistani agency and apprehended seven fishermen.

"In response, ICG Ship immediately proceeded to the reported location at maximum speed. Despite efforts by the PMSA ship to retreat, ICG Ship intercepted the PMSA ship and persuaded them to relieve Indian fishermen. The ICG ship was able to retrieve the seven fishermen safely, who were all found to be in stable medical condition," the ICG had said.