14 Indians Stuck Off UAE Port Without Food For 4 Months

Seek Rescue
Oct 03, 2016, 18:47 IST | Suraj Ojha

A Group Of 14 Indians Are Reportedly Stuck On Four Merchant Vessels Anchored

UAE For The Last Four Months. The All Indian Crew Has Allegedly Not Been Paid
And Now Are Low On Ration And Fuel

The all-Indian crew of MT Beta mostly eat limited portions of plain rice cooked by burning blocks of wood since
they are almost out of fuel
A group of 14 Indians are reportedly stuck on four merchant vessels anchored in the Gulf of Oman, United Arab
Emirates, for the last four months. The vessels, reportedly all oil tankers, are just 32 nautical miles (around 59 km)
from the port of Khor Fakkan, Fujairah, UAE. They were supposed to set off from the Emirati town for undisclosed
locations in early June. Not only has the crew, comprising only Indians, allegedly not been paid since being
recruited, but it has also begun to run low on ration and fuel.

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With generators off, the vessel is kept in ‘blackout’ condition

Sixteen crew members were recruited on a nine-month contract by a Mumbai-based crew manning agency, Abhay
Shipping Pvt Ltd, for four Aframax vessels — MT (motor tanker) Beta (7 Indians), MT Cityelite (7), MT AL Nouf
(2), MT Laowadale (2) — and departed from Mumbai for Dubai on June 8. From Dubai, they were sent to Fujairah
to board the vessels. All four anchored vessels are in close proximity of each other.

As per the practice in the shipping industry, the destinations of ships are reportedly known only to managers and
owners.
Provisions running out
In their efforts to be rescued and get paid, the crew of MT Beta sent a letter last week to the International Transport
Workers’ Federation (ITF). The ITF represents over 4.5 million transport workers from 150 countries and around
700 unions, and ensures safe vessels and decent working conditions for seafarers.

The crew sometimes eats just plain rice that it cooks by burning blocks of wood as it has begun to run out of fuel
The letter stated that the ship is running out of provisions — fresh water, medicines and food — and that safety and
life-saving equipment have either expired or are absent.

CP Singh, the second officer of MT Beta (who is the third in the command chain after the captain and the first
officer) is in charge of the vessel. The manager, with whom the second officer is said to be in contact, has assured
the crew repeatedly that help is on its way, but has allegedly done little else.

Singh told mid-day that MT Beta has provisions for only the next two weeks. “We are running low on fuel. The
generators are being run for just a few hours every day and the vessel is kept in a ‘blackout’ condition (an
emergency procedure).” He said written complaints have been sent to the ITF, UK, Directorate General (DG) of
Shipping, Mumbai, the Indian Embassy in the UAE, the UAE labour ministry, and Khor Fakkan port authorities.
“We are still waiting for help.”

Illegally hired?
The Indians’ recruitment allegedly wasn’t aboveboard. According to Manoj Yadav, secretary of Forward Seamen’s
Union of India, Abhay Shipping Pvt Ltd doesn’t have the requisite registration and placement service license
(RPSL) to hire sailors. It is mandatory for all manning shipping companies to have a DG-approved RPSL number.
“Despite not having the RPSL, the company is still recruiting. We are in touch with MT Beta and the other three
vessels. We have approached DG Shipping and other competent authorities to look into this issue and bring the
Indians back,” said Yadav.

Fuel is fast depleting. It is only used to fire up the generator to run the fans
He said the RPSL is akin to a bank guarantee given to DG Shipping by a recruiting agent. In case, a seamen gets
stuck or dies on board a vessel, that money can be used to get him back. “It is a mandatory recruitment licence. The
only option left before DG Shipping is to file a criminal case against the agent and to rescue the crew members via
the Embassy.”

No wrongdoing: Recruiter
Abhay Pandey, owner of Abhay Shipping Pvt Ltd, admitted to mid-day that he doesn’t have an RPSL. “But I have
other mandatory licenses. I have ISO 9001 (the international standard on quality management systems) compliance
and an IRS (Indian Register of Shipping) licence. I can supply manpower. I just don’t have the RPSL,” he said.
The IRS determines compliance under the international ship and port facility security (ISPS) code for Indian
flagships and port facilities.
Pandey claimed that the lack of an RPSL doesn’t take away the company’s recruitment powers. Of the 16 Indians
who were sent to Fujairah, two have been called back, he said. “We are making arrangements to get back the
remaining crew.”

He said DG Shipping and other authorities concerned are already apprised of the company running without an
RPSL.