Team Herald
VASCO: MV Neil, a barge carrying 900 tonnes of iron ore from Capxem in Sanvorden to Mormugao port, was grounded after the bottom portion of the barge got stuck in River Zuari at 4 am on Tuesday.
All seven crew members on board are safe after they were rescued by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel providing security to Mormugao Port.
According to the Information, MV Neil, owned by N K Singh, was proceeding towards MPT with a full load of 900 tonnes of ore cargo. When the barge reached near the Vasco bay it ran over the wreckage of a sunken fishing trawler ‘Pakistan’ and developed a hole in the hull. Within no time water started entering the vessel which led to it getting grounded.
After the crew members raised an alarm, the CISF patrolling boat rushed to their rescue and saved all the seven crew members.
“There are wreckages of several ships and trawlers in the navigational channel in the River Zuari. This hinders the free movement of barges approaching the port. These wreckages have to be either removed for free movement of the barges or MPT should set up buoys to alert the ships. The MPT has failed to do anything in this regard. This neglect led the loaded barge run over the sunken trawler and get grounded,” a barge owner told Herald.
The barge owners and the fisherfolk community have raised serious concerns on the presence of the wreckages in the navigation channel but there has been no response from the concerned authorities. The Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry has also raised the issue before MPT seeking their intervention to remove the wreckages. However, MPT is yet to consider such request, leaving the fishermen and other vessels crew at risk. Interestingly MPT has started the dredging work of navigational channel to felicitate berthing facility to capsized vessels but has been neglecting the work of removing wreckages from River Zuari.
