KOCHI: Expressing concern over the rise in incidents of mid-sea collisions, Additional Director General (DG) of Shipping Amitabh Kumar said there is a need to provide communication equipment to vessels that go for deep-sea fishing.
“There has been an increase in mid-sea collisions especially along the Kerala coast. We are concerned about the loss of lives. There are a set of signals and signages mandatory for the vessels to follow at sea. Normally, commercial vessels follow the procedure but most of the fishing boats lack the facilities. We are of the view all vessels should follow basic safety precaution. We are in talks with the Fisheries Department for finalisation of the SOP. It will be implemented with the concurrence of all states,” he said.
On the mid-sea collision off Kerala coast, he said visibility of vessels at night was a big problem.
“The vessels should have flags, navigation light, side light, stern light, mast light and anchor light. But most of the boats don’t have them. It is difficult for large ships to identify such boats crossing their course,” he said.
“This is why we want to emphasise on safety procedures at sea. We don’t know to what extent are the fishing boats following the safety practices. It is for the Fisheries Department to ensure their adherence. Clearly, there is a need to move towards equipping fishing boats with transponders and other communication equipment,” he said.
According to Kumar, the DG Shipping initiates stringent action to fix responsibility and penalise the vessels involved in mid-sea collision cases.
Navy to continue search for a week
Kochi: The Indian Navy has assured to continue search operations for seven more days to trace the seven fishermen who went missing after an unknown ship rammed their boat off Kochi coast. Naval officer-in-charge of Kerala, Capt Sudeep Malik informed Fisheries Minister J Mercykutty Amma that all efforts will be made to find the missing persons. Coast Guard officers were also present at the meeting. The Navy officers told the minister that they have searched around 30 sq km area near the accident spot to locate the wreckage of the sunken boat. The spit is located around 45 nautical miles off Kochi. Malik said the sea was 75-metre deep at the spot and it was impossible for Navy divers to reach the sea floor as water pressure is very high. The meeting decided to utilise the services of an MMD surveyor to identify the accident spot. The wreckage will be examined to collect scientific evidence. The MMD has detained Desh Shakthi at Mangaluru while the role of a Liberian ship is being probed.