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Grounded Goan ship to be taken over by govt

Sandesh Prabhudesai in Panaji

M V River Princess, the controversial ship grounded off North Goa's famous beachline for the last 19 months causing danger to Goa's tourism, is finally being taken over as state property.

The ship will be now refloated at government cost while its owner, M/s Salgaoncar Mining Industries Ltd, will ultimately benefit financially despite pushing the authorities into series of legal battles over its removal till date.

Getting grounded hardly 500 metres away from Goa's famous beachline of Candolim-Calangute-Baga, the wrecked up ship had caused serious concern due to danger of oil spill and nuisance to the swimmers at Sinquerim beach.

While owner of the ship Anil Salgaoncar, a powerful mine owner, took up a legal battle against every attempt of the state to remove the ship, the companies proposing to refloat it also backed out last minute due to monsoons last year.

The 26-meter long ore carrier had drifted away and grounded off Sinquerim on the night of June 6, 2000 as a result of stormy monsoon winds.

To overcome all the legal hurdles, the local Bharatiya Janata Party government then passed a new legislation -- the Goa Tourist Places (Protection & Maintenance) Act. It empowers the tourism director to issue notice to any owner of such a floating object to remove it within 15 days or then take it over as the state property.

"It will be now tendered by the government for refloating and the cost will be recovered by auctioning the ship for a scrap value," N Suryanarayana, the state tourism director, said.

Interestingly, while the act makes a provision to recover the additional amount from the owner if the cost of removal exceeds the auction value, it also provides for returning the extra money earned out of auction if it exceeds the cost of removal.

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