India has ordered shipowners, ship managers, and recruitment companies to stop deploying Indian seafarers on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The directive from India’s Directorate General of Shipping comes as renewed fighting in the Gulf region turns one of the world’s most important maritime corridors into something closer to a no-go zone.
Here’s why this matters beyond the shipping industry: the Strait of Hormuz handles roughly a fifth of the world’s traded oil. When the third-largest supplier of merchant sailors on the planet says “we’re not sending our people through there,” it’s not just a labor issue. It’s a signal that the situation has deteriorated past the point of manageable risk.
The chokepoint gets choked
India contributes an estimated 10-12% of the global seafaring workforce, with more than 300,000 Indian sailors operating across international shipping fleets. Iran has largely blocked shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz since late February 2026, amid ongoing US-Israel military strikes in the region. The blockade has already stranded more than 22 Indian-registered vessels near the strait, and there have been reported casualties among Indian seafarers due to strikes in the area.
