B'deshi barge sinks after hitting vessel near Kolkata, 13 crew

A Bangladeshi barge sank in the Hooghly river on Thursday after hitting a vessel of the Kolkata Port but all its 13 crew members were rescued, an official said.

The incident occurred at Akra near Budge Budge in West Bengal's South 24 Parganas district.

"The Bangladeshi barge 'Ma Mamotamoi' has sunk at Akra and all the 13 crew members have been rescued. Port vessel DV Rabindra, which was on its way for urgent buoy repairing works in the shipping channel, came in contact with the Bangladeshi vessel," Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT) spokesperson Sanjay Mukherjee said.

KoPT chairman Vinit Kumar has ordered an enquiry into the incident.

Registered in Dhaka, the barge allegedly sailed in the wrong navigation channel and hit the KoPT vessel, Mukherjee said.

The port vessel was also damaged, he said.

"After the collision, the port vessel reduced speed and requested the barge to move out of the channel. However, the barge failed to comply with the instruction," Mukherjee said.

In India, Abhipriya Ventures is the agent of the barge that was carrying 900 tonnes of fly ash.

"The crew members were rescued by M V Sani, one of our vessels," Abhipriya Ventures promoter Nitya Saha said.

The crew members will have to stay here until the barge is repaired, jetty operator Summit Alliance official Sagar Khastagir said.