Complaints of mistreatment and being abandoned by their employers in the event of numerous shipping companies facing economic loss have increased in the recent years.
What happened?
Forty-one Indian sailors employed in four merchant ships in the UAE are desperately asking to be rescued. Two of the ships are allegedly leaking and in danger of sinking. The owner of the company is said to have abandoned them. The sailors who are struggling for survival and to stay afloat have sent SOS messages. The four merchant ships are engaged in import and export of oil.
The sailors have sent tweets pleading for rescue to the Prime Minister and external affairs ministers.
Sailors Ignored:
The Captain has reported that the owner had taken the passports of all the sailors and was not responding to their pleas. The salaries of the sailors have also been pending for several months, some for as many as 15 months.
All ships are at Ajman anchorage of UAE. The crew is just surviving on limited provisions. While they still have water to drink, they don’t have enough for bathing.
Sailor Ananya Pratap Singh said, “Our ships are riddled with holes. We also don’t have diesel to run a generator.” Another sailor, Rahul Singh tweeted to the Prime Minister saying that they have not been paid for 15 months.
The Indian embassy in Riyadh was the only embassy to respond to the tweets of the sailors, has guided them to approach the Consulate General of India in Dubai.
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Source: Times of India
