A week after they hijacked a Turkish chemical tanker MV Cotton off the coast of Port Gentil in Gabon in West Africa, pirates have disembarked from the vessel. All 24 Indian crew members on board the vessel are in “safe and in good condition”.
“At 03:30 hours West Africa local time (7.30 am IST) on Monday, the pirates, who had captured the vessel off the coast of Gabon on July 15, left the vessel and command was resumed by the Master. The Master has confirmed that all 24 Indian crew members are safe and in good condition,” a spokesperson of the hijacked Turkish ship operator Genel Denizcilik Nakliyati AS ‘Geden lines’ said on Monday evening.
Simultaneously, a senior official of the Directorate General of Shipping also confirmed that the hijacked MV Cotton had been released by the pirates and that all 22 Indian sailors were safe. According to Geden lines spokesperson, the crew members on board the released ship have been in touch with their family members in India. “The vessel is now on her way to a secure port,” the company official said.
However, on its part, Geden lines thanked the Turkish Foreign Ministry, the Malta Flag Authorities, the insurers and all other international agencies and Governments “for their excellent cooperation and assistance throughout this incident.” The partially loaded, 184-metre long M V Cotton with a gross tonnage of 23,248 tonnes, had been boarded by suspected pirates while awaiting berthing at Gabon’s Gentil Port at 0453 hours GMT on July 15.
The 2007-built ship is owned by Turkish company Geden lines, and V Ships. The all-Indian crew was recruited by V Ships Turkey’s Indian subsidiary V Ships, India. When asked if the released Indian crew members were heading back to India, Capt Vaibhav Dalvi, Director, Crewing Operations, V Ships India told “The Pioneer” in the evening: “We have no information to share with you on this count - at least for now” Shishir Wahi (54) is the captain of the ship. While six of the 24 crew members are from West Bengal and the north east region, rest of the crew members are from different parts of the country, including New Delhi and Punjab.