(CNN)-- India has issued instructions to ship owners and operators not to send Indian sailors to work on ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz, amid renewed hostilities in the region.

In a statement issued late Wednesday evening, the Directorate General of Shipping said: "It is prohibited to send Indian sailors to work on ships undertaking voyages that involve passage through the Strait of Hormuz, until further notice."

The statement pointed to several drone attacks targeting ships in the Strait of Hormuz and its vicinity recently, which resulted in the deaths of two Indian sailors.

India is the third largest supplier of sailors in the world, with over 300,000 Indian sailors working on global shipping fleets, according to government data.

According to the Indian Sailors' Union (FSUI), about 15,000 Indian sailors remain stranded in the area west of the Strait of Hormuz.