New Delhi: Amid the ongoing war in West Asia and ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, India may consider forming a protection and indemnity (P&I) club for shipping lines and vessels.
Rajesh Kumar Sinha, Special Secretary, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways told the media that his ministry is in discussions with the finance ministry on the issue and a study is also being prepared.
P&I Clubs are independent, not-for-profit mutual insurance associations that provide coverage to their shipowner and charterer members against third party liabilities related to the use and operation of commercial vessels.
The development comes amid requests by several shipowners in India for a P&I club amid the US-Israel-Iran war and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of India’s energy costs pass.
Earlier there were also discussions to set up an Indian P&I club. However, the plans did not take concrete form. In June 2025, Mint reported that the government had started consultations to set up India’s first P&I entity called India Club to provide third party insurance to Indian ships operating in the country’s coastal areas and inland waterways.
There was also some discussion about the P&I club earlier, SINha said. “Two-three days ago, we also discussed this issue with the department of financial services (in the finance ministry). We have also commissioned a study on it, which is underway. The report based on the study should be with us very soon. We will act on the basis of the report. It will be an important step for us,” Sinha said.
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The need for an India-focused P&I entity was felt to reduce the country’s vulnerability to international sanctions and pressures where insurance cover is denied to shipping lines operating between countries facing sanctions.
Currently, third party risks in shipping are insured with the International Group of P&I Clubs, a 13-member group based in London that provides liability cover to over 90% of shipping lines worldwide.
Apart from fleet owners, the government may also contribute some seed money to the new P&L entity to help it raise the necessary capital to start underwriting, Mint reported earlier.
Current scenario
Sinha noted that 22 Indian-flagged vessels with 611 Indian sailors were stranded on the western side of the Strait of Hormuz.
“Currently, 22 Indian-flagged vessels with 611 Indian seamen remain in the Western Persian Gulf region. The Directorate General of Shipping continues to monitor the situation in coordination with ship owners, RPSL agencies and Indian missions,” he said.
On India’s fuel stock scenario, Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said India remains self-sufficient in petrol and diesel production and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) supplies continue to be monitored keeping in view the prevailing geopolitical situation.
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It also noted that cases of panic bookings of domestic LPG cylinders have come down somewhat from a peak of over 88,000 bookings reported on March 13. There were about 70 million bookings on Monday, up from pre-war levels of 50 million.
“Domestic production of LPG from refineries increased by around 38%… while verification code coverage for delivery has expanded from 53% pre-crisis to around 76% to prevent misuse,” Sharma said.
Several states and Union Territories including Bihar, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Manipur, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand have issued non-domestic LPG allocation orders as per government guidelines. The government had earlier allowed supplies of 20% of the average consumption by commercial consumers in the last six months in a bid to ease supply shortages after the Center prioritized domestic consumers.
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