Abandoned dredger Tridevi Prem sinks 2.5-NM off New Mangalore Port

MANGALURU: Dredger Tridevi Prem abandoned by its 13-member crew at the New Mangalore Port anchorage at Panambur in the wee-hours of Monday capsized and sank some 2.5 nautical miles from the port, around 1.30am on Tuesday. This action by the crew who were contracted to carry out capital dredging in the port, promptly saw Directorate-General of Shipping issuing a notice to owners of this Mumbai based shipping company.
The port in 2016-17 had entered in to a 3-year-contract with Mercator to carry out dredging, which the company abandoned five-months ago, Venkata Ramana Akkaraju, chairman, New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT), said. The dredger was at outer anchorage since then. With the vessel sinking, the port has requested Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, Hyderabad to keep an eye on the coordinates where the vessel went down.
Noting that the act by the crew in abandoning the dredger attracted penal provisions under Merchant Shipping Act, 1958, Akkaraju said Mercantile Marine Department (MMD) under the DG Shipping on Monday issued notice to the owners. In addition, Dehradun based Indian Naval Hydrographic Department has been asked to plot the site on navigation charts where the dredger sank, to warn international seafarers about its exact position, he said.
Asserting that dredger sank well away from navigational channel of the port, Akkaraju said there is no problem to other ships operating to and from the port. However, in interest of local fishing community, the port will set up marker buoys at the spot, he said, adding it is now up to the insurers of the vessel to take up the issue of salvaging the wreck and removing the approximately 45-kilolitre of high speed low sulphur fuel at the bunker.
Notice issued by Praveen Nair, surveyor in-charge, MMD under section 356(J) and 356(K) of Merchant Shipping Act directed master/owner/charterer/agent of vessel to take immediate steps to prevent escape of oil in to the Sea, including removal of all oil from the vessel and prevent pollution damage that can be caused due to oil spill. The notice directed stakeholders to take measures to prevent and mitigate pollution damage caused due to the incident.