CHENNAI: Two years of wait notwithstanding, the dilly-dallying of Mumbai-based RPSL agent Nimbus Maritime Services over paying compensation to 12 Indian sailors who were killed during a collision between two vessels in Russia in January 2019 has snuffed out what little hope the families of the deceased had, when the firm claimed that its licence got cancelled in March, thus seizing it of any liability to part with any aid to them.
MT Candy was a Tanzanian flagship carrying LPG and is said to have been engaged in a ship-to-ship transfer of cargo at the time of the explosion in Kerch strait in Russia. Sivaraj, the brother of Saravanan Nagarajan of Tirukovilur in Kallakurichi – who was one among the 12 sailors onboard the vessel, said that Nimbus had been dilly-dallying on the issue of compensation for the past two years to the families.
“Sameer Dalvi of Nimbus has been promising us compensation for the past two years whenever we enquired with him,” he said. Things took a different turn recently as Sameer asked Sivaraj not to bother him again as his firm’s licence got cancelled, thus leaving the families in the lurch. “My father T Nagaraj, a tea-seller in Tirukovilur in Kallakurichi, had taken loan of Rs 3.5 lakh to place Saravanan on the ship, MT Candy. Creditors are knocking at his doors and now the money is also being denied for flimsy reasons,” Sivaraj said. Efforts to reach out to Sameer failed.
Nimbus has not also declared the details of the Protection and Indemnity Club (P&I club) – a non-governmental, non-profitable, mutual or cooperative association of marine insurance providers to its members which consist of ship owners, operators, charterers and seafarers under the member companies. In such events, the P&I club settles the compensation.
Director General of Shipping (DGS) Amitabh Kumar said that they have cancelled Nimbus’ licence as they have not been complying with the requirement. “It is the duty of the RPSL agent to ensure the compensation is paid. The families of the sailors should file a police complaint of criminal negligence on the part of Nimbus,” he said.
Kumar said the Directorate General of Shipping could take up the issue with the flagship or the owner if the families send in their representation. On Nimbus not declaring the details for the Protection and Indemnity Club, Kumar said, “We will find it out if the families provide us with details of the vessel and its flagship.”
K Sreekumar, an inspector with the London-based International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), said, “The manning agent is registered with the Directorate General of Shipping under the RPS rules. Hence it is the duty of the DGS to initiate criminal action against the agents for non-payment of compensation.”