Team Herald
margao: Pressure is building on the State government and Central government to evacuate the seafarers on board the Marella Discovery ship docked near Mumbai. A video of Goan seafarers and another one of the Captain of the ship claiming that there was lot of delay from the Indian Government has only amplified the anger among the people.
The anger amongst the seafarers has reached its boiling point due to the slow response by the government.
The Goan Seamen Association of India (GSAI) has appealed to the govt to act immediately on the evacuation of the 174 Indians including Goans seafarers at the Marella Discovery ship off the coast in Mumbai. GSAI President Frank Viegas along with Capt. Venzy Viegas Dixon Vaz held an emergency meeting on Tuesday with the CM, where they requested him, DG Shipping’s office at Mumbai and IMF to act fast as the vessel, which has been in Indian waters for the last 40 days to disembark the Indian crew before heading to Europe.
GSAI added that many representations have been made already and that the Indian crew is desperately asking for help to come home.
The company pointed out that the company has been waiting for the government approval to disembark; failing which, the master of the vessel announced that on Wednesday, April 22, at 6 pm, it will set sail to Europe.
Venzy Viegas suggested that the Indian crew should be transferred immediately on Karnika (another ship in Indian waters carrying Goan seafarers), following which, the vessel can sail of to Europe. This way, the Indian seafarers can stay back in India.
Vaz, demanded that the decision should be taken on Tuesday itself and that if the vessel does head back to Europe with the Indian seafarers on board, it will be a big shame for Goa. He cautioned that the vessel is running out food and that seafarers of other nationalities are getting better treatment from their respective countries except the Indian crew.
Goa Congress Chief Girish Chodankar also sent a tweet to the PM asking him ‘to please take action and act as soon as possible for the sake of humanity and allow our Goan Seafarers to disembark at Mumbai’. “We are tired of fake promises and hope given by Goa CM and Michael Lobo. We feel helpless and dejected seeing our family members suffering for so many days”, he added.
AAP Goa said that distress cries of seafarers on board ‘Marella Discovery’ fell on deaf ears. But 8,000 students in Kota were taken home to UP.
“The Union Shipping Ministry had led the Goa CM to declare that work towards finalization of a ‘SOP’ for seafarers to come back into the Country was in progress. Shipping circles were hopeful that the SOP would be out by April 21. But the u-turn taken by the government once again has showed that the system in the country is deeply oppressive, divisive and unequal” said AAP.
