Caught between devil and deep sea, Indian crew on Panamanian vessel send SOS to officials

CHENNAI: Caught between the devil and deep sea, Indian sailors on Panamanian flagship vessel MV VSG Pride are in a fix whether to continue sailing and risk their lives or forfeit their savings which they paid to their agent to get the job.

Tamilvannan, a sailor from Namakkal, told The New Indian Express that Indian sailors in MV VSG Pride are fearing for their lives after a chief cook stabbed one of them and assaulted others even as the captain of the ship and chief engineer failed to initiate any action.

The sailors wanted Indian officials to guarantee their safety on board or ask the agent to pay back the service charge which he collected from them.

Tamilvannan says the crew started facing problems on board for the last 15 days. "The trouble started from April 16 when we asked for provisions from chief cook Pham Xuan Hai, who got offended and attacked us. He later bought a knife to our room and tried to kill us. Our Indian crew got injured badly. We complained to the captain. Rather than trying to calm things out, he started laughing at our plight and not a word was uttered against the cook. Neither was any medicine offered to the injured crew. The next day they offered the medicine, which had expired a year ago," says Tamilvannan, who has yet to take a decision whether to sail ahead or sign off in Tuticorin.

Suraj Singh, a Mumbai resident and one of the Indian crew in the vessel, says the situation got worse on April 25. "Getting drunk, the chief cook dumped garbage in front of our cabins and again brought the knife to kill us. However, we defended ourselves and manage to take away the knife and throw it in the sea. A third engineer who was witnessing the incident brought out two rods and asked us to fight it out rather than resolving the issue," he said.

As the ship was docked in VOC port in Tuticorin, the sailors fearing for their lives wanted to sign out. It is learnt that K Sreekumar, an inspector with the London-based International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF), had approached the Mercantile Marine Department under the Director General of Shipping (MMD) and the local police to initiate action.

Ajithkumar Sukumaran, Principal Officer-cum-Joint Director General of Shipping (Tech), MMD Chennai told The New Indian Express that they have advised the vessel not to sail as of now till the investigation is completed. It is learnt that a police complaint was filed after an ITF representative intervened on behalf of the crew.

Tamilvannan confirmed that police visited the ship and said that they will forward a complaint to the police headquarters. It is learnt that the cook is alleged to have claimed ISIS links as the crew shared some posters pasted on the ship. "One of the third engineers was trying to buy guns at ports and we have evidence also," said one of the sailors.

Five of the crew are willing to sign off and three of the Indian crew said they are risking their lives as they have already paid Rs 3 lakh as service charge to the agent and $50 a month from the salary they are receiving. Indocean Shipping official Anil K Salkoria denied he had asked taken any service charge and $50 a month from the crew that was hired. He also said that initially, he was unaware that the sailors were facing such hardships. "Initially, they had told me about one of the crew facing some stomach problems. I did not know they were assaulted," he said.

"I had raised the issue with the management and they assured me that they will take action," he said. "As a precautionary measure, I have asked the sailors to sign off as anything can happen in mid-sea," he said. But Tamilvannan is continuing his journey. "The ship is going to Vietnam and will be in dry dock for the next 15 days. We will be put in a hotel during that time and I am worried about my safety," he added.