New Delhi, Sept. 21 -- The ongoing West Asia conflict is pushing India to change how it keeps track of its seafarers overseas, with the government building a system that can pinpoint individual Indian crew members aboard ships anywhere in the world during a crisis. the ministry of ports, shipping and waterways told Mint.

The effort follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi's proposal at the recent Brics Summit for a seafarer network that could eventually link India's maritime systems with those of bloc and later other maritime nations. The system is envisaged as a round-the-clock emergency network, rather than just a tracking database.

Under the ministry of ports, shipping and waterways' (MoPSW) direction, the Directorate General of Maritime...