Mumbai: At least five sailors were asphyxiated by leaking gas aboard the LPG vessel Maharshi Krishnatreya in the Arabian Sea seas, a maritime official said here yesterday. The ship was en route to the UAE when the incident occurred in the compressor room of the vessel, according to the Directorate-General of Shipping (DGS).
The ship’s chief officer, a gas engineer and four other seamen were attempting to repair a damaged gas pipe in the compressor when they were overcome by the gas. Five persons have succumbed, but their identities and other details were not immediately disclosed, the official said.
The sixth victim was in serious condition and airlifted to Porbandar by helicopter for medical treatment. On learning of the accident around 11am, the vessel’s owners, Varun Shipping here alerted the Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard for relief and rescue operations. The distressed ship has been diverted to Porbandar port in Gujarat and two vessels with a medical team and a Sea King MK-42C helicopter have been deployed for evacuation of the crew. Another naval ship cruising in the vicinity, INS Tabar was diverted to render assistance to Maharshi Krishnatreya.
Rupee drops to
one-and-half month low against dollar
Mumbai: Indian rupee dropped to one-and-half month low of 54.25 against US dollar before regaining some ground yesterday amid persistent demand for the American currency from banks and importers as it made gains in the overseas forex markets, The Times of India reported. The rupee opened lower at 54.10 per dollar as against the last weekend’s level of 53.81 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) Market and dropped further to about 6-week low of 54.25.
Later, it was quoted at 54.13 a dollar. The rupee moved between 53.90 and 54.25 against the US currency in the morning deals. Sustained dollar demand from banks and importers in view of its higher value in New York market affected the rupee, a forex dealer said. Agencies
