The New Indian Express News

Indian shipyards will commission five warships each year in the next five years, reports 'The New Indian Express', citing Defence Minister A K Antony, who added that the challenges faced by the shipbuilding industry led it to look towards the defence sector for orders. The Defence Minister made these remarks after commissioning the Coast Guard Ship Abheek -- the second fast-patrol vessel of the Indian Coast Guard designed and built by Cochin Shipyard Ltd., pointing out that as the resources on land were getting depleted at a rapid pace, nations were turning to oceans for sustenance. The newspaper adds that the Abheek is propelled by water jet with a maximum speed of 33 Knots and an endurance of 1…

In a courtroom drama the captain of the Korean ship told the court the abandoned ship's engine room was flooded and there was danger of a capsize. MV OSM Arena had been anchored off the Port of Chennai since February 2010 following cases filed by different parties against the owners in the Calcutta and Madras high courts to recover their dues, and it has been under ‘arrest’ since September 2012, reports The New Indian Express. When a matter pertaining to the sale of the ship came up before Justice R Sudhakar at the Madras High Court, the captain of the vessel, Yethi Ka, made a surprise appearance before the judge. Yethi Ka told the court he had abandoned the ship on Tuesday morning and reached the shore using a fishing boat that was passing by.

Malayali engineer Arun George Thomas, evacuated from an India-flagged ship off Goa coast after father obtained a court order. The evacuation was based on a High Court directive following a Habeas Corpus petition filed by Arun’s father who alleged that Arun was being illegally detained in the ship, reports The New Indian Express. Arun told Thrikkakara police that after he joined the ship in November from Sharjah, he came to know that it was not sea worthy and hence wanted to quit. But the authorities aboard threatened him and he was forced to continue on the ship, though the company later promised to relieve him in UAE, he was not released and the ship set sail for Singapore on Dec 6. The ship then broke down 8 nautical miles off the Goa coast.

According to a report from The New Indian Express, the Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL) on Friday said the strike by the workers of the contractors was affecting the normal operations, including strategic naval projects, shipbuilding and ship repair work at the yard.   Source: The New Indian Express