Maritime bodies pledge support to flood-ravaged Kerala

Leading maritime bodies -- MASSA, MUI and NUSI -- have pledged to donate Rs 30 lakh to flood-ravaged Kerala for relief operations.

Besides, Anglo Eastern Shipping Group (AESG), Hong Kong said it would provide about USD 50,000 (about Rs 35 lakh) to the state.

The Maritime Association of Ship owners Ship managers and Agents (MASSA), The Maritime Union of India (MUI) and National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI) will each donate Rs 10 lakh to CMDRF, the three organisations said in a joint statement.

"India's leading maritime bodies have pledged to donate Rs 30 lakh to Kerala Chief Minister's Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF)," the statement said.

 

MASSA Chairman Prashant Rangnekar said, "In the current situation, MASSA is committed to help the maritime state of Kerala which has contributed immensely to the growth of India's maritime sector. Many MASSA members too have declared to donate huge sum to CMDRF."

AESG country head (India) Vinay Singh said: "During the flood in 2013, we provided financial assistance to Uttarakhand CM Relief Fund too. To Kerala CMDRF, we shall donate over 50,000 US Dollars within a week's time."

A sizeable workforce of merchant navy resides in the flood-affected areas of Kerala, MUI General Secretary Amar Singh Thakur said. "It is our duty to support in the moment of distress."

NUSI General Secretary Abdulgani Serang said, Apart from giving financial assistance to the State, our office located in Thoppumpady region of Kochi is consistently in touch with the local administration on 24X7 basis for facilitating search & rescue operations in Kerala.

Indian subsidiaries of world's leading ship-manning companies, that employ thousands of Indian merchant navy officers, are active stakeholders of MASSA since its inception in 1947.

The MUI represents merchant navy officers of India since 1941.

India's oldest shipping union, NUSI continues to serve low-skilled and semi-skilled workforce of Indian merchant navy for the past 121 years.