THE CASINO VESSEL LUCKY SEVEN THAT BELONGS TO THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL FORMER HARYANA MINISTER GOPAL KANDA WAS ON ITS WAY TO ANCHOR IN RIVER MANDOVI A MONTH AGO, HAD HIT THE SANDBAR IN MIRAMAR. AFTER HITTING THE SANDBAR THE SHIP WAS FLOATING PARALLEL BUT, LATER ON, IT HAS BECOME PERPENDICULAR, AND NOW IT HAS TURNED 180 DEGREE AND SUNK ON ONE SIDE DUE TO THE 12 METRE CRACK DEVELOPED IN BOTTOM OF THE VESSEL, WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT…
The experts suggest that the best way to get rid of the disaster at the moment is to dismantle the Lucky Seven as soon as possible, and if that is not done, then the possibility of this ship becoming another River Princes could not be ruled out.
According to the reports, a 75-meter long offshore casino vessel MV Lucky Seven, that was grounded on the famous Miramar Beach, has now apparently developed a 12 meter crack on its bottom, situated below the engine room, which is now filled with the seawater. The sources also revealed that two propellers of the ship had been stuck in the sand, and the tanks of the vessel are flooded with the sea water due to which the vessel is now started sinking from one side.
The vessel which was promised to be removed within 48 hours after the disaster took place, is now going to remain on the Miramar beach until the end of September, suggested the sources, and if that happens there is complete possibility that this vessel could be a repetition of Sea Princes disaster.
Earlier the problem was with the weather condition alone, but, now the deteriorating condition of the ship is also have been added to it. The one-month long vacation from toeing the ship has come due to the crack formed into the vessel. If they try to tow it now with the damaged bottom condition it will completely sink in the water, said the sources.
Now with the above condition in the place the only option remains with the ship owners, is to get it dismantled, said the sources, without mentioning if that is possible at the moment. Overall the fate of Lucky Seven does not looks to be favoring its return back into the water in the near future.
Meanwhile, the suggestions of dismantling the ships could be the only option left at the moment but the environmentalists are against the same, they feel that this procedure could be proved hazardous. The sources said that even during the time of River Princes tragedy, the grave concerns over the health and environmental hazards were raised, although it was only the 26 meters long, almost three times smaller compared to the existing Lucky (Not So Lucky) Seven.
The former salvage company, Arihant Ship Breakers is no longer associated with the Golden Globe Hotels Private Limited, the owner of Lucky Seven, for the salvaging the ship, and tow the same to the MPT (Mormugao Port Trust) jurisdiction, and hence the company had asked the other available option, Madgaonkar Salvagers to present the quote for pulling the vessel to Jaigad Dockyard situated in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra.
The sources revealed that, the owner of Madgaonkar Salvage Company, Mr. Anand Madgaonkar has told the media that they are not sure of the towing of the vessel at the moment as they have yet assessed the damages to check out the possibilities to towing it to Jaigad which is quite far from Goa compared to the MPT. “Once we assess the condition then only will be able to decide whether to tow or dismantle the vessel completely at the existing location,” said Mr. Madgaonkar.
The sources also revealed that the attempt of the earlier salvage, Arihant Ship Breakers, was almost successful, and they had also successfully repaired the 6 metre gap developed in the ship, however, the process could not get completed as the owners wanted to take the ship back into the River Mandovi, and the authorities did not allow them to do so and the vessel remained grounded.
The administration is also playing the hide & seek game in this casino business. Despite warning Mr. Kanda to remove the vessel from Miramar the authorities could not enforce the same on the owner of the vessel as the District Magistrate, Nila Mohanan, has taken the decision of removal of the vessel in 30 days but the notice in this regards have not been issued as yet.
In the bargain the ship remains on the seashore of Miramar for more longer time, and due to this the erosion of sand dunes cannot be ruled out said Antonio Mascarenhas, former scientist at NIO (National Institute of Oceanography) he also suggested the dismantling of the vessel on the spot instead of towing it, which according to him will be the most dangerous.
What is your take on this? Do you think the vessel will ever float again? what will be the fate of Lucky Seven? Is our government is responsible for the disaster?? Please leave your valuable comments on this serious issue.
SOURCE: NAVHIND TIMES
