Two Indians were killed in a drone attack in Sohar city in Oman, along with causing injury to 10 other Indians, the government said on Friday. As reported by Al Jazeera, the drone crashed in the industrial area of Al Awahi, which claimed the lives of two workers and injured several others.
During a government briefing, Aseem Mahajan, Additional Secretary in the Gulf Division of India’s Ministry of External Affairs, said the incident occurred in Sohar, a city located close to Muscat.
“We deeply regret to share that two Indian nationals lost their lives in the attack. Out of the 11 people injured, 10 are Indians. Five have already been discharged after treatment, while the remaining five are undergoing treatment in hospitals. None of the injuries are serious,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Indian authorities are closely connected to local officials and the company, which is involved to assist those who were injured. The Indian mission is also helping with
Rajesh Kumar Sinha, Special Secretary of the shipping ministry, said that there are in total 24 Indian-flagged vessels in the west of the straits, which carry around 677 Indian soldiers. Additionally, he said that across the Gulf region, nearly 23,000 Indian seafarers work on merchant and offshore vessels.
Indian authorities are in close touch with local officials and the company involved to assist those injured. The Indian embassy is also helping to send the bodies of the victims back to India.
Furthermore, it has also been said by the government that it is closely monitoring the safety of Indians across western regions, which consist of nearly one crore Indians.
Meanwhile, the External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randir Jaiswal said that India has remained connected with countries in West Asia ahead of the current security situation.
Officials said around 170 Indian nationals in Iran have recently crossed the land border into Armenia. Several have already returned to India, while others are expected to travel back on commercial flights in the coming days.
Amid concerns over energy supplies due to the security situation in West Asia, the government has strongly denied reports of any shortage of petrol, diesel, LPG, or natural gas in India.
Sujata Sharma, who is also the joint secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said that India’s refining capacity accounts for 258 million metric tons and the country remains self-sufficient in the production of petrol and diesel.
“All our refineries are operating at full capacity, and we have adequate inventories of crude oil. Supplies are being maintained, and there is absolutely no need for panic,” she said.
Over 1.5 crore households are linked to the domestic piped natural gas network, and the government said supplies of PNG for homes and CNG for vehicles will continue normally without any curbs.
At the same time, officials said LPG bookings have seen a spike in recent days, driven by panic buying. Daily bookings, which usually average around 50 lakh, have climbed to about 70–80 lakh.
