Along with a Nepali national, the vessel’s crew comprises 21 Indians, including the master.

Off the coast of Gujarat, a suspected drone strike caused a merchant ship carrying 21 Indians to catch fire and explode on Saturday morning, cutting off the ship’s power supply, according to Coast Guard officials. They declared the 22-person crew and the ship, Chem Pluto, to be “safe.” According to the sources, the ship was en route from Saudi Arabia to New Mangalore. The ship’s engineers are trying to restore the ship’s energy supply, which was interrupted during the event, after the fire has been put out. According to them, the Indian Coast Guard Ship Vikram was redirected to the location while patrolling the Exclusive Economic Zone.

“At approximately 10 am, the ship’s agent, Fleet Management, sent an email to the MRCC (Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre) in Mumbai regarding a fire on board that was possibly caused by a drone attack 217 nautical miles off Porbandar,” a maritime security agency official stated. The official said there are 21 Indians on board the ship, including the master, as well as a citizen of Nepal. “The firefighters could put out the fire, and the engineers are trying to get the power back on.” The official stated that the crew of the merchant navy ship MV Marlin was discovered to be safe after the MRCC diverted it. The official said, “We will be looking into whether it was a drone attack.”