Four of the armed pirates, who had come in speedboats to hijack the Indian cargo vessel, have been captured in the encounter, a senior minister from Somalia said.

There were no reports of any injuries.

Earlier on Tuesday, an official of the International Maritime Bureau said pirates seized the ship which was en-route to Somalia and hijacked it south of Socotra island over the weekend.

The attack came despite increased international cooperation to crack down on pirates in Somali waters.

The hijack has pushed the number of attacks by pirates this year in Somali coast to 74. A total of 30 ships have been hijacked and 10 remain in the hands of the pirates along with nearly 200 crew members.

The Indian Government has dispatched a powerful stealth warship to the area as momentum has been growing for coordinated international response to the spate of hijacking being unleashed by Somali pirates using speed boats.