​

The Solanki family in Kandivili is grappling with unimaginable grief after learning that their son, Dixit Amritlal Solanki, 33, was killed aboard the tanker MKD Vyom, allegedly struck by a missile on March 1 while carrying about 59,000 metric tonnes of gasoline. His death comes amid a series of attacks on merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, which lies between Iran to the north and Oman and the UAE, that have left seafarers dead, missing and injured. The National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI) has expressed “grave concern,” as two crew members remain missing from Skylight, another vessel, and tensions continue to rise across the vital shipping corridor.

The location of the vessel MKD Vyom

NUSI is coordinating with Indian embassies in Baghdad and Bandar Abbas for assistance and repatriation efforts. “All surviving crew from MKD Vyom have been safely disembarked in Oman, the fire extinguished, and the vessel stabilised with no reported pollution,” said an NUSI official.

A young life lost

Solanki joined the MT MKD Vyom tanker on December 10, 2025, serving as an oiler. He had been on board for 80 days when tragedy struck. The vessel departed Europe on February 8, and was heading to Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, when it was attacked. Solanki, was reported missing and later believed to have been killed in the explosion. Efforts are on to retrieve the body  The remaining 21 crew members were rescued unharmed by MT SAND and are in Muscat completing the legal formalities for returning to the port of origin. The vessel remains adrift, according to NUSI General Secretary 
Milind Kandalgaonkar.

NUSI is calling for…

>> Maximum restraint by all parties, safe passage for commercial shipping,  transparent international investigation, and support for affected seafarers and their kin

Important facts

>> Missile and projectile attacks on commercial vessels have left seafarers dead, missing, injured and stranded
>> Two crew members are missing from the Palau-flagged tanker Skylight
>> A crew member was killed aboard the Marshall Islands-flagged product tanker MKD Vyom.
>> A seafarer reportedly died in Basra, Iraq, following a missile strike
>> Four Indian seafarers are awaiting repatriation from Bandar Abbas, Iran
>> Attacks took place in and around the Strait of Hormuz, off Muscat, Oman, near UAE waters, in Basra, Iraq, and in Bandar Abbas, Iran. 

‘He had just resumed work after mourning loss of mum’

The Solanki residence in Mahavir Nagar, Kandivli West.  Pic/Ranjeet Jadhav

Neighbours of Dixit Solanki said they were pained to learn of his passing. The youth, who resided at MHB Colony in Mahavir Nagar, Kandivli West, had resumed duty on the ship after spending time in Mumbai and his home town following his mother’s death a few weeks ago, according to his neighbour, Sugandha Parab, 74. “He rejoined the vessel towards the end of last year. He was a quiet and good boy. He would often come to my house and talk to me,” said Parab, who has lived in the colony for over 40 years. Solanki is survived by his father and an elder sister.

– Ranjeet Jadhav