India has deployed its navy to aid the crew of a ship that was hijacked off Somalia’s coast.

The vessel has 15 Indian crew members onboard, Indian media reports say.

The crew sent a distress call to a UK marine agency, saying that “five to six unauthorised armed persons” had boarded the ship east of the Somali port town of Eyl on Thursday evening.

A patrol aircraft has “established contact with the vessel, ascertaining the safety of the crew,” the navy says.

The guided missile destroyer INS Chennai “is closing [in on] the vessel to render assistance” while a naval aircraft is monitoring the ship, the navy added.

The ship, named as the MV Lila Norfolk and which bears the Liberian flag, was en route to Bahrain before the hijacking.

The crew had earlier told the United Kingdom Marine Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency they were hiding in the vessel’s citadel, a secure compartment within a ship used for protection during emergencies or potential threats such as piracy.

Recent sporadic attacks on vessels off Somalia’s coast have triggered concerns that piracy could be making a resurgence in the region.

Pirate attacks, often launched from Eyl, were a huge problem for international shipping from 2008-2011, prompting countries from around the world to send warships to patrol the area.