CHENNAI: Exactly three months after two ships collided off the Ennore coast under unique circumstances, time is ripe for fixing the liability. Reliable sources told Express that the investigation into the incident has been completed and the Director General of Shipping is currently reviewing the matter. The final probe report will be out in next three weeks.
Kamarajar Port Ltd and two ships — MT Dawn Kancheepuram and BW Maple — have been trading charges against each other while many of the primary questions still remain unanswered.
The inquiry is headed by the Deputy Nautical Advisor from Mumbai assisted by officials from Mercantile Marine Departments of Mangaluru, Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Tuticorin. Minjur Police, who registered the FIR, have also participated in the probe.
While both ships are still docked at the Ennore Tank Terminal Private Limited pending inquiry, it is still unclear why Kamarajar Port allowed two ships to sail in the same channel. Kamarajar Port on record has avoided responsibility, putting the entire blame on the two captains.
MA Bhaskarachar, Chairman-cum-Managing Director, said the port had issued collision warning on Vessel Traffic System, the Port Control, for both vessels, which was acknowledged by BW Maple. However, the captains, who were on the same VHF channel, didn’t communicate with each other.
Though MT Dawn Kancheepuram claims the Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency Plan (SOPEP) was initiated, it remains a mystery why the Indian Coastguard was kept in the dark about the quantum of oil spilt. Even the port, keen on acquiring an indemnity bond from MT Dawn Kancheepuram’s owner, kept the leaking ship waiting for three days.
Though DG Shipping has issued a notice under 356 (K) of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958, wherein, all expenses and liabilities incurred in dealing with the incident were deemed as debt to the central government by the two vessels, BW Maple has only agreed to pay $1,50,000 as one-time settlement. The amount has been remitted to the Tamil Nadu Fisheries Development Corporation to construct two fish markets at Nochikupppam and Eranavoor.
Meanwhile, based on the documents available with this newspaper, Kamarajar Port has collected Rs 70 lakh from MT Dawn Kancheepuram, director of Kancheepuram has been paid Rs 80,600, while claims worth about Rs 7 crore are pending. The Ennore terminal, where the ships are docked, has placed a claim of Rs 2.86 crore.