New Delhi, January 6: The Indian Navy has deployed a total of six warships for anti-piracy and anti-drone operations and more of them will be sent further to tackle the challenge in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden, Indian Navy chief Admiral R Hari Kumar said. "Indian Navy has deployed six warships in the anti-piracy and anti-drone operations. The number is going to go up further. A proposal has been submitted to the government in this regard and clearance is expected shortly," Navy Chief told ANI.

Admiral R Hari Kumar also stated that the Navy is already equipped with anti-drone capabilities including GPS Jammers, surface-to-air missile systems, and laser devices. "Some warships are already equipped with it and we are working on induction of these capabilities in others," the Navy chief said. Liberian-Flagged Vessel MV Lila Norfolk Reports Hijack, Indian Navy Ship Responds to SOS, Commandos Rescue Crew Members (Watch Video).

Indian Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar Speaks Hijacked Vessel 

On the recently concluded operation to save 15 Indians from the hijacked vessel MV Lili Norfolk in the Arabian Sea, the Navy Chief said, "We take the challenge to bring back our countrymen from wherever they are. It was not an Indian-flagged ship but the crew were Indian and it is our national policy to help them whenever they are distressed. We did the same in Sudan and Ukraine." He further stated that directions have been given to the Naval officers to take action to prevent piracy at any cost.

"We want to keep the Indian Ocean region safe and secure," the Navy chief said. Earlier all 21 crew members including 15 Indian nationals from the hijacked vessel MV Lila Norfolk off Somalia coast were safely evacuated by the Indian Navy on Friday. On the sanitisation operation conducted by Marine Commandos at Merchant vessel MV Lila Norfolk, Admiral R Hari Kumar said, "It seems that after seeing our aircraft and drones operating all over the ship hijacked by them, the Pirates ran away from the Lili Norfolk in the night of 4-5 January itself. The Marine Commandos had to sanitise the vessel for any traps or other issues." Indian Navy Intercepts Merchant Vessel MV Lili Norfolk After Attempted Hijacking; Rescues 21 Crew Members (Watch Video).

Navy further credited the Centre for bringing the anti-piracy act stating that very few countries in the world possess such legislation, "Our national leadership has passed the anti-piracy act, it has made it clear that there is no room for piracy in our region and this is our responsibility as Indian Navy to ensure that. It is our duty to find them and take action against them. We have been enabled by the anti-piracy act, very few countries have an act like this," he said.

Merchant vessel MV Lila Norfolk was hijacked by pirates 300 nautical miles east of Somalia, while it was sailing from Port Du Aco in Brazil and was bound for Khalifa Bin Salman in Bahrain. The Indian Navy's Mission Deployed Platforms responded swiftly to the hijacking attempt on board a Liberian-flagged bulk carrier after it received a message on the UKMTO portal indicating boarding by approximately five to six unknown armed personnel on Thursday evening.

In response to the situation, the Indian Navy launched a Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) and diverted INS Chennai, deployed for maritime security operations, to assist the vessel.