JULIAN D’ CRUZ
teamherald@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: Goa’s coastline could be staring at a disaster of huge proportions if the transhipper MT Pratibha Bheema is not towed away before the 2014 monsoons, with danger of the vessel grounding, oil spillage or even an explosion in extreme circumstances looming large.
The Captain of Ports Department in a communication has asked the Tourism Department to act at the earliest and listed out issues concerning abandoning of the oil tanker. The statement was submitted during a hearing held by the tourism department where owners of the M T Pratibha Bheema were summoned but failed to turn up.
The department had issued a show cause notice to the owners of Pratibha Bheema summoning them for a hearing and plan of action to tow away the vessel which is now abandoned off Mira Mar coast.
While the company owning the vessel was not represented Tuesday, the Tourism Department has rescheduled the same for next week and is expected to pass orders ex-parte if the company fails to attend the same.
Meanwhile, the Captain of Ports Department submitted its statement to the Tourism Department Tuesday expressing its fears of possible damage to Goa’s coastline, ecology and a huge impact on tourism.
The statement disclosed that vessel owners have not responded positively to doing anything to safeguard the vessel from the time it anchored off the Goa coast on December 13, 2012 and from the time the vessel was in Port for 105 days.
The communication adds that even now, while the vessel is within Panjim Port anchorage the owners, since September 15, 2013, have not acted to move the vessel out of Goan waters.
‘The vessel is anchored and abandoned about 8 nautical miles off Mira Mar. The condition of the anchor chain and its ability to withstand rough weather is suspect,’ says the communication.
‘The vessel poses an imminent threat to the ecologically sensitive Goa coast as the vessel is still carrying 400 metric tons of fuel,’ it adds, pointing out that the vessel which is unmanned, unlit and unsafe is posing a navigational hazard, security threat and in case of anchor dragging or anchor cable breakage may lead to grounding and subsequent oil spill and irreparable ecological damage.
It also refers to a NIO department source which has recently expressed fears that in the event of any inclement weather, wind force or swell waves, the likes of which flooded some of the beaches of North Goa in March 2011, there are chances of the vessel’s anchor dragging or anchor cable breakage and subsequent drifting of the vessel towards the Goa shoreline.
The Ports Administration also pointed out that if a tanker (such as MT Pratibha Bheema) is not gas freed then it is almost like a potential bomb and the presence of a spark is sufficient to explode it.
The communication highlights that even though the condition of the vessel’s cargo tanks are not known, strong fears have been raised of the possibility of the tanker exploding.
The Ports Administration has urged the Tourism Ministry to declare the abandoned vessel as a nuisance and a potential threat to tourism and to proceed to attach or auction under the Tourism Trade Act.
A senior tourism department official said, “We have given the vessel owners time till next week to be present for a hearing,” adding that in case they fail to be present, the department will pass ex-parte orders and take necessary action as per the Protection of Tourist Places Act.
