Members of the Thoothukudi Coastal Mechanised Sail Vessel Owners’ Association are happy after the Ministries of Shipping and Home Affairs have clearly indicated that it was not mandatory for masters and crew of sail vessels to possess Indian passports while undertaking domestic voyages.
While hailing it, the association has placed further demands to help resurrect the ailing industry. S. Lasington Fernando, secretary of the association, on Tuesday said the Thoothukudi port was desperately in need of drydocking facility. Though there is a physical structure of dry-dock at the Thoothukudi old port, it remains idle for want of maintenance and repair works.
Lack of drydocking facility, which is required for taking up repair works in sail vessels, was the cause for concern among stakeholders relying on this industry since periodical maintenance works in the vessels could not be taken up here. The lack of such facility has necessitated these vessel owners to solely rely on Mangalore Port as there was no other alternative.
“It’s not only time consuming when vessels sail long distances, but we are also burdened by the rising expenditure on drydocking. The lion’s share of expenditure is incurred in drydocking and huge revenue goes to the Mangalore Port,” he told The Hindu . The hiring charges for the dry-dock at Mangalore Port for a day for a vessel is Rs.8,500 and the charges are hiked to Rs. 10,000 everyday after ten days. Apart from this, the expenditure on pumping water and electricity on a commercial basis also adds to the burden. Hence, he suggested that the drydock facility be established at least on a build-operate-transfer basis at the old port here.
The stakeholders of the sail vessel industry would also come forward by generating funds to have an equal share with the Port authorities. While vessel surveyors had been insisting on safety with good maintenance of vessels, the basic facility of drydocking was lacking. Much to the agony, there has been inordinate delay in providing gate passes to the crew members of sail vessels. The gate pass fee for the crew is generally paid three months in advance, but still there is delay. Despite being the non-remunerative period now, each of the crew member had to shell out Rs.17 for entering the Old Port. If engines in the vessels berthed at this port were not started once in two days, they would develop technical snags. Rest room and toilet facilities for the crew were also not provided at the old port, he said.
