Indian navy deploys after crew injured on burning container ship
Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) said in a statement that there were "some injuries" among the crew, with four members unaccounted for.
Photographs taken by a coast guard plane showed a thick plume of billowing black smoke and containers that had seemingly been hurled up by a powerful explosion on board.
"Fire incident reported onboard Singapore-flagged container vessel MV Wan Hai 503," India's defence ministry said in a statement, adding that it had diverted a destroyer to aid the stricken ship.
It said the 268-metre (879-foot) vessel caught fire some 78 nautical miles off Beypore port.
Singapore's MPA said that, of the total crew of 22, 18 had been "accounted for and are in the process of being transferred from lifeboats to a passing vessel", adding that "some injuries have been reported among them".
It said four crew members remain unaccounted for. "The Indian Coast Guard and Indian Navy are rendering assistance to the crew and conducting search and rescue operations for the missing crew," the MPA said.
A Liberian-flagged container ship with hazardous cargo sank off the coast of Kerala in southern India last month. The Indian navy rescued all 24 crew members.
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Gulf Weekly
7 days ago
- Gulf Weekly
Tale of human connections
The English translation of former Bahrain-resident and author Millat Ahmad's novel has hit the shelves, and offers a poignant portrayal of migrant life abroad, writes Melissa Nazareth. Indian expatriate and second-year student at Catholic Junior College, Singapore, Alief Ahmad, collaborated with his father Millat, who wrote the novel Singapooril Saravanan in 2020 in Tamil. The new book entitled Three Hearts, One Sorrow brings alive culture, history and human emotion and is set against the Little India riot, which took place on December 8, 2013, following an accident that killed an Indian worker. 'While the novel is purely a work of fiction, it's inspired by true events,' 53-year-old Millat, who is also known for his filmmaking, told GulfWeekly. 'The initial inspiration for this story came to me while I was in Bahrain as I witnessed first-hand the incredible social work of individuals in the kingdom, who dedicate their own money and efforts to help repatriate the bodies of deceased Indian workers to their families back home,' he added. The novel captures the emotional journey of Saravanan's friends, as they navigate the complex process of repatriating his body to his homeland, after he dies amidst the unrest. Millat masterfully weaves together the life stories of three individuals, presenting the narrative from multiple perspectives: through the eyes of a character, as a narrator, and via a diary. This multi-faceted approach offers a deeply emotional and nuanced exploration of foreign workers' lives, exposing the harsh realities of agent exploitation and painstakingly detailing the procedures and certifications required to bring a deceased body back to India. 'My son suggested that translating the novel into English would help it to reach a wider audience, especially those who don't read Tamil,' said the former video shop owner who used to live on Zubarah Avenue in Bahrain. 'While still an O-Level student at St Patrick's School, he eagerly volunteered for the task, diligently working on the translation during his breaks from studies. He completed the project during his school holiday. 'The publication of Three Hearts, One Sorrow coincides with Singapore's 60th Diamond Jubilee this year,' Millat added.
Daily Tribune
21-07-2025
- Daily Tribune
Ahmedabad Air Disaster: 'Media Points Finger at Pilot'
On June 12, a catastrophic event shook the nation when Air India Flight 171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed moments after takeoff from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad. The tragedy claimed the lives of 241 of the 242 passengers aboard and 19 individuals on the ground at a medical college hospital where the aircraft plummeted. From the outset, suspicion has swirled around the pilots as the cause of the disaster. Initial reports suggested that co-pilot Clive Kunther was responsible for the crash. However, in recent days, media narratives have shifted, pinning the blame on Captain Sumit Sabharwal. Speculation, fuelled by sensationalised reporting, claims that Captain Sabharwal, grieving the recent death of his mother, deliberately caused the crash as an act of suicide. These allegations, reportedly based on leaks from agencies such as the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which are assisting India's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), were first carried by The Wall Street Journal. The story, marked by dramatic language, was picked up by The Daily Telegraph and subsequently amplified by Indian media outlets. Indian authorities, however, opted to retain control of the aircraft's black box rather than transfer it to the United States. The Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation has also categorically dismissed these media claims, emphasising that the investigation remains ongoing. This stance appears to reflect wider concerns among those closely monitoring the investigation, including within Boeing and Air India. Who, then, is Captain Sumit Sabharwal? At 54, this unmarried pilot resided with his elderly parents in Powai, Mumbai. His mother passed away recently, leaving behind his 97-yearold father, a former official with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Captain Sabharwal, whose elder sister resides in Delhi with her two children, both pilots, was reportedly preparing to retire to care for his ailing father full-time. Colleagues and friends describe him as a calm, respected individual who, even amidst personal grief, maintained a routine of taking walks with his elderly father. With extensive experience piloting aircraft such as the Airbus A310, Boeing 777 and the 787 Dreamliner, logging between 8,200 and 15,638 hours on the latter, Captain Sabharwal was a seasoned aviator. Yet, media narratives allege that this composed and dedicated professional resorted to suicide, driven by grief over his mother's death and the burden of caring for his aging father. How implausible does this story seem? This rush to judgment, introduced in reports by The Wall Street Journal and The Daily Telegraph, was echoed widely by Indian media over the past two days. Adding fuel to the fire, some commentators, including a pilot named Mohan Ranganathan, have publicly speculated about possible mental health factors, though no formal documentation or diagnosis has been cited in public records. Strikingly, few have questioned why such concerns were never formally documented. Instead, these claims risk shifting the narrative away from systemic or technical issues and toward a pilot who can no longer defend himself. It is worth noting that since 2019, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner has faced documented technical and software issues. To attribute the crash of an aircraft, potentially experiencing unresolved maintenance issues, to a pilot's personal tragedy is not only convenient but also deeply troubling. The ease with which some media have embraced this theory, while giving little attention to the aircraft's mechanical record, is alarming. According to official reports, Air India Flight 171 crashed on June 12 at 1:39 PM Indian Standard Time, or 8:09 UTC, just 30 seconds after takeoff. At the moment of impact, the aircraft's maximum speed was recorded at 180 knots. Reports further indicate that the engine start switches were reactivated at 8:08:42 UTC, suggesting that within the brief 30-second window post-takeoff, the aircraft's engines were turned off and then restarted. The apparent cause? The fuel tank switches were found in the 'off' position. The flight's voice recorder captured a critical exchange: one pilot, upon discovering the issue, asked, 'Who turned this off?' to which the other responded, 'Not me.' This conversation, preserved in the retrieved black box, has fuelled a narrative, first raised by The Wall Street Journal and echoed by The Daily Telegraph and Indian media, that Captain Sumit Sabharwal deliberately switched off the fuel supply, causing the crash. The question remains, whom does this narrative serve? Let us now examine the flaws in this theory. Imagine driving a car at 80 kilometres per hour and suddenly shifting it into neutral without braking. The car would continue moving forward for some distance due to inertia, the natural tendency of an object in motion to remain in motion. The same principle applies to an aircraft. In the case of Air India Flight 171, the crash occurred at 1:39 PM IST, moments after the pilots' recorded exchange about the fuel switches. The switches were found off and promptly turned back on, indicating that the pilots noticed the issue when the engines lost the thrust needed to climb. Following standard procedure, they attempted to reboot the fuel switches at 8:08:42 UTC to restart the engines. Tragically, within the next 18 seconds, the aircraft plummeted to the ground. If the engines were restarted at 8:08:42 UTC, they must have been turned off, or become inoperative, prior to that moment. For an aircraft travelling at 180 knots, an immediate crash upon engine cutoff is implausible. Inertia should have allowed it to glide further before descending. The absence of such a glide suggests the fuel switches were turned off while the aircraft was still on the runway, causing the engines to fail shortly after takeoff. Like a kite with a snapped string, the plane briefly soared before crashing and bursting into flames. The pilots' exchange likely occurred during this chaotic sequence. Would a pilot intent on suicide attempt to restart the engines to save the aircraft? The notion seems absurd. Another critical point: the fuel switch in a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner (registration VTANB), powered by two General Electric GEnx-1B engines, is not a simple electrical toggle like a light bulb. It is controlled by a sophisticated software system known as the Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC). When a pilot flips the fuel switch, it sends a request, not a direct command, to the software, which evaluates the request based on operational conditions. In some cases, the system may even prompt the pilot for confirmation before cutting the fuel supply to the engines. These processes unfold in milliseconds. In essence, even if Captain Sabharwal had intended to sabotage the flight, it would have been extremely difficult to bypass the FADEC system to cut the fuel supply and bring down the aircraft. Moreover, the timeline of events suggests there was simply no time for such an act. Since 2019, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner has been repeatedly affected by software glitches, with Boeing issuing periodic service patches to address them, patches that have often been criticised as inadequate. Meanwhile, Air India faces allegations of negligence in maintaining this aircraft. Whether the reported technical issues, some of which Captain Sabharwal is said to have noted in the logbook, were addressed promptly, or whether the aircraft was overdue for servicing, remains under investigation. Yet, despite these unresolved questions, some media outlets have presented Captain Sabharwal as the primary cause, based on reports that remain unverified. My plea is simple: until the official investigation report is released, we must refrain from tarnishing the memory of a captain who lost his life in this tragedy. The allegations against Boeing and the persistent issues with the Dreamliner's systems could easily warrant another major article. However, for now, the focus must remain on seeking the truth, not perpetuating convenient narratives.
Gulf Weekly
17-07-2025
- Gulf Weekly
How does your garden grow?
As the sun blazes outside and temperatures soar, indoor plants feel the heat too. Summer brings its own set of challenges for houseplants, from scorching sunlight to dry air. Melissa Nazareth speaks to green-fingered enthusiasts, exploring some common seasonal plant parent peeves and tips to keep your foliage thriving. l Water, water everywhere but… The sun is stronger in this part of the world, which can make staying hydrated a challenge for both bough and beast. 'Plants dehydrate at a faster rate as the soil gets dry,' Indian expatriate and plant mum Soumi Sarkar, who started housing indoor plants during the Covid-19 pandemic, told GulfWeekly. 'Some tried and tested tips that have helped me are bottom watering in a tub or bucket, with pebbles for plants that soak up water faster as they create a barrier. The inverse bottle method based on drip irrigation technique has also worked for me,' added the 37-year-old artist from Tubli. Bottom watering is a technique in which plant pots are semi-submerged until the top is wet to the touch, helping even distribution of moisture. l Without 'mulch' ado While used more for outdoor plants, mulching can help indoor foliage too by reducing evaporation and retaining moisture in the soil. Gravel, sand, or rubber mulch are suitable for house greens as outdoor mulch can be too heavy. 'Organic mulch retains soil moisture and regulates temperature,' said Bahrain-born-and-raised Sultan Quresh aka 'Bahrain Plant Guy', who has a garden and a collection of indoor plants. The data science and artificial intelligence enthusiast's passion for gardening blossomed during the pandemic. 'It's a time when many of us turned inward for comfort and creativity. I still recall getting my first pothos, and from there, my indoor plant collection grew rapidly,' he said. l Soiled for choice According to Sultan, it is essential to select plants that thrive in warmth, given Bahrain's climate. 'Snake plant, aloe vera, and jasmine sambac perform well when temperatures are warm but not extreme,' said the plant lover, who has travelled across Europe and Asia, exploring diverse plant cultures and regional climates. 'These experiences have broadened my understanding and you'll often find exotic indoor plants in my collection – species that wouldn't typically survive Bahrain's outdoor climate, but thrive under careful indoor conditions.' Meanwhile, Soumi recommended snake plant, rubber plant and ZZ, as well as dracaena varieties and money plants. 'Unlike, say, spider plants and jade, these are more resilient,' she noted. l United we stand Grouping plants, as observed by plant parents worldwide, has many advantages. 'The cluster method works all the time. Keeping all the plants together so each of them benefits from the humidity created in one place has helped me,' Soumi revealed. Meanwhile, Sultan has reaped the benefits of partial shading through taller companion plants, which he observed reduced heat stress for more delicate varieties. Different plants have different needs, and the tips listed in this feature might need to be customised to suit individual requirements.
