The Directorate General of Shipping has issued a notice to Mercator Ltd to remove the wreckage of its dredger ‘Tridevi Prem’ which sank on September 3 near the New Mangalore Port.
Addressing presspersons in Mangaluru on Friday, AV Ramana, Chairman of the New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT), said that the Joint Director General of Shipping, Chennai, has issued the notice to Mercator Ltd.
Quoting a letter sent to him by the authority, he said the company has agreed to remove the wreck of the dredger, and appointed an agency to do salvaging.
He said the salvaging the dredger needs a lot of planning, and the weather conditions need to be favourable. He added that the DG Shipping has filed a case against the company under the Merchant Shipping Act.
RD Tripathi, a representative from the Shipping Ministry, who was present on the occasion, said the wreck of the dredger will not affect coastal communities or the beaches in the region.
Ramana said the port has been co-ordinating with the Indian Coast Guard and ISRO to monitor the location where the dredger sank. These agencies have not reported any oil spill till Friday morning.
No traces of oil spill
The NMPT sent the samples from the location to Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL) and the Mangaluru-based National Institute of Technology Karnataka (NITK) for further testing. The port has got reports stating that there are no traces of oil spill, he said.