Chennai:
Twenty-eight Indian
sailors held captive by Somalian pirates were released on Friday and they are
expected to reach Indian shores within a week, according to Union Shipping
Minister G K Vasan.
Addressing reporters
here after the 121st meeting of National Shipping Board, Vasan
said 17 Indian sailors of M V Royal Grace and 11 Indian sailors of M T Smyrni
were released. Both the ship was hijacked by Somalian pirates on March 17 and
May 11 respectively.
The minister said nine
Indian sailors are still under the captivity of Somalian pirates and Union
government will work for their safe passage.
He
said the rescue operations were done in a discreet way and hailed the joint
efforts of shipping ministry, defence ministry and external affairs ministry in
this regard.
The
minister also said Chennai port will have one of two emergency towing vessel
hired by the Shipping Ministry to rescue grounded vessels. The other vessel
will be stationed in Mumbai in West coast. He said these vessels have been
handy in the rescuing efforts during cyclone.
Meanwhile,
the deadline of Rs 1,600 crore Ennore-Manali Road Improvement project has been
extended by another months. Vasan said the work on the EMRIP project is 60 per
cent complete and is likely to be totally completed by Octobe 2013.
He
said the ministry has adequate funds are talks are on with the Union government
to acquire land for the project. The minister also said that his ministry plans
to constitute a committee to review preparedness and capacity of ports to
combat oil spills.
The
minister also said that on the advice of National Shipping Board, the
government has notified the rules regularizing the entry of ships of age more
than 25 years in the Indian waters to reduce shipping accidents.
Vasan
also said that his ministry has formulated an incentive scheme for modal shift
of cargo from rail or road to inland waterways or coastal shipping.
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