Meet Lieutenant Commander Shivam Kumar: Who Risked His Life to Recover Two Indian Sailors From a Burning LPG Tanker

On the morning of 18 October 2025, in the restless waters of the Gulf of Aden, a fully laden Cameroon-flagged LPG tanker named MT Falcon (also referred to as MV Falcon) suffered a catastrophic explosion. Flames quickly consumed sections of the vessel. Highly volatile liquefied petroleum gas continued to leak. Toxic smoke filled the compartments. Structural integrity was compromised. And somewhere inside the shattered, heat-scorched hull, two Indian crew members remained unaccounted for.

Nearby, the Indian Navy’s Talwar-class frigate INS Trikand was on maritime security duties. When the distress call came, one officer stepped forward to lead what would become one of the most hazardous peacetime boarding operations in recent Indian naval history. That officer was Lieutenant Commander Shivam Kumar, the ship’s Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defence (NBCD) Officer.

For repeatedly entering the burning, gas-filled tanker fully aware that a secondary explosion could kill him and his team at any moment Lt Cdr Shivam Kumar was awarded the Shaurya Chakra, India’s third-highest peacetime gallantry award, announced by President Droupadi Murmu on the eve of Independence Day 2026. He was the sole Indian Navy recipient of the Shaurya Chakra in that year’s list of 78 gallantry awards.

This is the story of that operation, the man who led it, and why his actions continue to resonate across the defence community.

The Man and His Role

Public details about Lt Cdr Shivam Kumar’s personal background remain limited. What is known centres on his professional competence and the extraordinary courage he displayed under extreme conditions. At the time of the incident he held the rank of Lieutenant Commander and served as the NBCD (Damage Control) Officer onboard INS Trikand.

In the Indian Navy, the NBCD Officer is responsible for the ship’s survivability in the face of fire, flooding, chemical or biological threats, and battle damage. The role demands deep technical knowledge of firefighting systems, toxic gas behaviour, structural assessment, and confined-space operations skills normally applied to protect one’s own warship. On 18 October 2025, those same skills were applied to a foreign merchant vessel in far more unpredictable and lethal conditions.

INS Trikand, a guided-missile frigate commissioned in 2013, was operating in the Gulf of Aden as part of the Navy’s broader maritime security posture. The region had seen repeated threats to commercial shipping, including Houthi-related attacks. The operation involving MT Falcon is referred to in official communications linked to the Ministry of Defence as having taken place during Op Sanchet.

The Incident: Explosion in a High-Threat Zone

MT Falcon was sailing from Sohar Port in Oman toward Djibouti when the explosion occurred approximately 113 nautical miles southeast of Aden, Yemen, around 0700 UTC on 18 October 2025. The tanker was fully laden with LPG. Initial assessments indicated that roughly 15 percent of the vessel was engulfed in fire. A continuing gas leak fed the blaze and created the constant threat of a secondary detonation.

The tanker carried a crew of 26. Twenty-four members managed to abandon ship and were rescued by nearby merchant vessels. Two Indian crew members remained missing and were believed trapped inside the burning, structurally compromised vessel. Indian reports and the gallantry citation consistently identify the missing sailors as Indian nationals. The vessel’s location placed the rescue effort within or near the Houthi attack zone, adding the further risk of hostile action even as the fire raged.

International maritime sources, including statements from the EU’s Operation Aspides, noted early uncertainty about the precise cause some initial reports mentioned a possible projectile, while later assessments leaned toward an onboard accident. The Houthis issued a denial of involvement. For the Indian Navy team that responded, the tactical reality was clear: a burning LPG tanker adrift in a contested maritime space with two Indian sailors still unaccounted for.

Leading from the Front: The Boarding and Recovery

When INS Trikand was directed to assist, Lt Cdr Shivam Kumar volunteered to lead the internal search and recovery. He did so fully aware of the risks: fatal burns, blast injuries, suffocation from toxic gases and oxygen-deficient air, entrapment in collapsing compartments, or instantaneous death from a secondary LPG explosion.

What followed was a series of high-risk entries into the devastated tanker. Accompanied by a team of firefighting and medical specialists from INS Trikand, Kumar repeatedly boarded the vessel. Conditions inside were extreme. Passageways were choked with dense smoke. Compartments were filled with explosive LPG vapours and toxic fumes. Decks and bulkheads were heat-scorched, warped, and weakened. Visibility was often negligible. Debris and structural damage obstructed movement.

Kumar led his team through these confined, contaminated spaces multiple times. He conducted continuous real-time risk assessments, evaluating structural stability, gas concentrations, and fire behaviour as conditions changed. He coordinated with external firefighting efforts, including a civilian tug contracted by the tanker’s owners. Despite prolonged exposure to heat, toxic gases, and physical exhaustion, he spearheaded the deep internal searches that eventually located the remains of the two missing Indian crew members.

The recovery itself was grim and demanding. The mortal remains were described in the citation as dismembered and decomposed. Kumar personally supervised and participated in their extraction from the most severely damaged compartments, ensuring the process was carried out with as much dignity and safety as the circumstances allowed. The remains were subsequently handed over to the Embassy of India in Djibouti.

Throughout, the team operated under the dual threat of the tanker itself exploding and the possibility of hostile action in the surrounding waters.

The Award and the Citation

For these actions, Lt Cdr Shivam Kumar was awarded the Shaurya Chakra. The official citation is unambiguous in its language. It speaks of “most conspicuous gallantry,” extraordinary courage, professional competence, presence of mind, and unwavering devotion to duty in circumstances of exceptional peril.

Key passages highlight that he acted “far beyond the normal call of duty and at immense personal risk.” His fearless leadership and technical expertise were credited with enabling the successful completion of an extraordinarily hazardous operation. The citation further notes that these actions brought “immense credit to him” and “enhanced the stature of the Indian Navy as a capable and dependable maritime force operating under demanding circumstances.”

The Shaurya Chakra, instituted in 1967, recognises acts of gallantry not in the face of the enemy but in situations of exceptional bravery disaster response, high-risk rescues, and similar peacetime perils. In the 2026 Independence Day list, Kumar stood as the only naval officer so honoured.

Wider Context and Significance

The Gulf of Aden and the approaches to the Red Sea have been among the most challenging maritime theatres in recent years. Commercial vessels have faced repeated threats. Indian Navy ships have responded as first responders, escorts, and rescue platforms. The MT Falcon operation fits squarely within that pattern of professional maritime assistance under threat.

For Indian seafarers who form a significant portion of the global merchant marine workforce the knowledge that their Navy will go to extreme lengths to recover them, even after the worst has happened, carries deep emotional and practical weight. The recovery of the remains provided closure for the families of the two missing sailors.

For the Navy itself, the operation demonstrated the practical value of specialised training in damage control and the culture of leadership that expects officers to lead from the front even when the risks are extreme. It also reinforced India’s image as a net security provider in the Indian Ocean Region capable not only of combat operations but of complex, high-stakes humanitarian and recovery missions far from home waters.

There is a further, quieter significance for those preparing for careers in the armed forces. The story of Lt Cdr Shivam Kumar is not one of dramatic combat against an enemy force. It is a story of calculated courage under technical and environmental conditions that few civilians can fully imagine: heat, toxic gas, structural collapse, and the constant knowledge that the next spark could be fatal. It illustrates the kind of professional competence and moral courage the services seek and reward.

A Quiet Act of Extraordinary Courage

Lieutenant Commander Shivam Kumar did not seek publicity. The details of his actions emerged primarily through the formal process of gallantry awards and subsequent reporting. What is clear is that on 18 October 2025, when a burning LPG tanker in the Gulf of Aden still held two missing Indian sailors, he chose to go inside repeatedly and bring them home.

In doing so, he exemplified the highest standards of the Indian Navy’s damage-control tradition and the broader ethos of the service. His Shaurya Chakra is both recognition of personal gallantry and a reminder of the quiet, dangerous work Indian naval personnel continue to perform in distant waters so that others may be safer.

The two Indian sailors were recovered. Their remains were returned with dignity. And an officer who risked everything to make that possible now stands among the gallantry awardees of Independent India.