National Maritime Day: India’s oil lifeline churns through conflict waters

On most days, India’s economic heartbeat is invisible. It does not pulse through stock exchanges or policy corridors but across vast, restless waters where ships move quietly between continents. Yet, when conflict erupts in narrow choke points like the Strait of Hormuz, that invisible system becomes the country’s most visible vulnerability. The ongoing tensions have done exactly that, forcing India to confront a reality it has long managed but rarely foregrounded.