From Kapil Verma, Priyanka Joshi and V K Menon
MUMBAI – Ten ships, including a few offshore supply vessels, have sunk near Mumbai harbour in the past 13 years, making the channel a graveyard of ships. The debris of the sunken vessels are already posing a threat to ships and fishing boats.
Apart from that, more than 30 stranded offshore supply vessels (OSV) continue to pose a major threat to lives of seafarers. The 30-odd vessels have been reduced to rusted buckets after they were anchored in Mumbai harbour since July 2007.
They have been stuck after a survey conducted by the Director General of Shipping. DG Shipping conducted this unique survey after the sinking of offshore vessel SAMUDRA near Bombay High in July 2007. Most of the ships did not conform to the specifications laid by Indian Register of Shipping, an apex governing body for shipping in the country.
While some of these ships are anchored near Ferry Wharf, a majority of them are pitching and rolling in the rough seas in the main navigation channel leading to the harbour. Some of the supply vessels are anchored between Jawahar Dweep, Uran and Rewas across Mumbai harbour. These ships are a threat to local fishermen, particularly after frigates navigating the channel.
And authorities have done nothing to tackle this threat so far.
The captains of MSC Chitra and Merchant Vessel Khalijia, the vessels that collided off Mumbai coast causing an oil slick, were each questioned for nearly two hours by the Yellow gate police station last night. This was after a criminal case has been filed against the two under various sections of the IPC and environment protection for endangering life and causing damage.
According to sources, the two have not been arrested but were questioned about every minute detail of the ship, including the contents of the containers and the collision.
A policeman said that it seems they did not follow the norms which eventually led to the collision. The complaint was filed by the Maharashtra Pollution Control board on Sunday night. There were chemical container’s electronic goods and other items on the ships.
The two have said that there was no negligence on their part and they had followed all the norms. The cops have recorded their statements and will be taking all the necessary technical help from the Shipping Department. It will help police and authorities to ascertain who was at fault. The arrest will be decided later. The two were charged under section 280 of IPC for rash and negligent act endangering life or personal safety of others, section 427 for Mischief causing damage of fifty rupees. And section 7, 8 and 9 of Environment Protection Act.
The oil spill could make Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust poorer by at least Rs 4 crore a day. So because, vessels headed towards Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust might now take a detour towards Gujarat. Likewise, the Bombay Port Trust (BPT) too stands to lose revenue. Makes good economic sense to clean up the oil spill soon. “This incident will have a revenue impact for the port temporarily,” said Chief Operating Manager of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust S N Maharana.
The port will remain shut for operations till the salvage operation ends. That could take at least three to four. And if weather conditions are not favourable, it might prolong.” Around seven vessels are loaded and off-loaded daily at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust. On an average, the port handles nearly 2,800 vessels every year. The revenue-generating capacity of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust is pegged at around at least Rs 3.50 crore a day. Of equal concern is that vessels laden with perishable goods waiting to dock at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust might take move on to a neighbouring port.
“If our salvage operation continues for a few more days, it is possible that containers laden with perishable goods divert their route to Mundra or some other port in Gujarat to off-load the goods at the earliest,” said a senior Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust official. A Singapore-based agency has been roped in to pull out the submerged containers. The agency will pull out the containers, shift them to a safer location in Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust. Also, the containers on board the sinking vessel will be moved to safety.
400 tonnes, the quantity of oil that has spilled into the sea. High tide has stretched the oil slick from Raj Bhavan to Mandva and Alibaug 250, the number of containers that fell into the sea and few submerged into the sea while few are floating. 1989, the year in which the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust was started. Rs 3.5 cr, the revenue generating capacity of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust Rs 2.47L, the amount charged by Port authorities as pilot and tugging charges for a vessel weighing 22,000 metric tonnes Rs 86K, an additional surcharge is added as port charges MPT chairman Rahul Astana said the oil spill has been contained.
The oil spill may have been plugged yesterday three days after the two Panamanian cargo ships collided off the Mumbai coast, but environmental concerns remain over the oil slick and the presence of toxic chemicals in water. The damage could have been controlled only if oil skimmers would be used in the clean-up act, say experts further criticising the Coast Guard.
E C Jon, director of firm that provides shipping services and a consultant to government and private shipping companies, said, “The best way to clean up the spill is to use the oil skimmer. The skimmer collects the water and separates the oil from it. The water can be thrown back into the sea and the oil can also be recovered.” “In case of the British Petroleum oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, oil skimmers were used. If the Coast Guard had used them they would not have struggled with the slick,” he added.
Sudheer Banerjee, another consultant with some of the country’s leading shipping corporations, echoed Jon’s sentiments. “Using skimmers is the best option in such a situation, as it not only purifies the water, but also helps retain oil. It would have cut down on losses.” According to Jon, chemical dispersants, which were used to combat the oil spill may not have been the best option.
