A marine engineer's death in Iran, a misidentified body, and Jharkhand family's endless wait for compensation

Indian Express

11-07-2025

When he heard of his older brother's death in a workplace accident in Iran, the ground slipped beneath Raghu Mahto's feet. What followed was an ordeal involving misidentified bodies, bureaucratic apathy, and the long wait for compensation.
On March 27, Raghu's brother Alakh Nandan Mahto from Tartara village in West Singhbhum district's Manoharpur died at an 'accident' on board the MV Rasa at Charak Port, a ship under the Iran's shipping company BND Yat Ship Management Services — an agency approved by the Directorate General of Shipping (DG Shipping). Another engineer was killed in the accident and a third was severely wounded. All three were Indians
In the days that followed, the family had received the wrong body and ran into multiple bureaucratic walls as they continued to wait for compensation. But all they have from the shipping company is a vague email in the first week of May. That email, a response to several emails the family sent, said it 'needs time.'
'Even now, over three months since the incident, no one from the Jharkhand government, the employer, or DG Shipping has committed to giving us compensation,' Raghu told The Indian Express.
On its part, the DG Shipping claims it blocked BND Marine's licence in late 2024 after some violations. When contacted, Anita Sinha, a senior DG Shipping official, confirmed that the department was 'actively' pursuing the matter. But she also admitted there were 'some complications' – such as Alakh's name being listed against another vessel.
'We've taken this up with foreign embassies, including our Indian mission in Iran and the flag states. We are following up with the agency and the P&I (Protection and indemnity) Club too,' she said. 'This case is of the highest priority to us.'
However, Raghu remains sceptical, wondering how, if the company was blocked in August 2024, did it continue to send engineers abroad till March 2025.
'They say the immigration records show my brother was assigned to a different ship, but he died on another one. How is that my brother's fault? Isn't it DG Shipping's job to track this?' he asked.
According to the family, Alakh had always dreamed of working at sea. After getting a mechanical engineering degree from a college in Chennai in 2013, he worked briefly at Maruti Suzuki before enrolling in the Graduate Marine Engineering (GME) course – a pre-sea training programme approved by the Directorate General of Shipping (DG Shipping).
Since then, he worked on rotation-based contracts, travelling previously to Iran, Andaman, and Kolkata ports. In August, he was posted at BND Yat Ship Management Services.
After the mishap, the family rushed to DG Shipping's HQ office in Mumbai, where they were told that there was no official communication on the incident.
In the days that followed, multiple government departments, the local district police, the Labour Ministry, and the shipping office were looped in. Despite these efforts, it took one month for the body to arrive in Kolkata.
But the family was in for a shock – when the coffin was opened, they found that the body inside belonged, not to Alakh, but to another crew member – a man from Uttar Pradesh. Raghu then contacted his father and travelled to Uttar Pradesh to hand over the body.
'Nobody from the government helped. We paid from our pocket for ambulances, legal formalities, coordination with departments… I even carried someone else's body to Uttar Pradesh and returned before finally receiving my brother's remains,' Raghu recounted. 'After a week in May, we received the right body.'
Meanwhile, the wait for compensation to be given continues. While the family is seeking ex-gratia assistance under Chief Minister Jharkhand International Migrant Worker Grant Scheme, the latter has said they are ineligible.
Under the scheme, in the event of an untimely death during a worker's stay abroad, a lump sum payment of Rs 5 lakh will be made to the dependents of eligible beneficiaries by the appropriate deputy commissioner.
'According to the policy, for ex gratia assistance in such cases, a valid family income certificate showing annual income below Rs 72,000 is mandatory. Without that, we cannot give the compensation. The deceased's family has explained this,' Avinash Thakur, the district labour superintendent officer of West Singhbhum, said.
Meanwhile, West Singhbhum Deputy Commissioner Chandan Kumar said he 'wasn't aware of the case'.
But Raghu disputes this saying he had spoken to the deputy commissioner. 'The deputy commissioner and the district labour department say we're not eligible because our family income exceeds Rs 72,000/year. But they don't look at the costs — bringing back the body, repeated travel to Mumbai, emotional toll…Even Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme workers get more than Rs 6,000 for their work,' Raghu said.
Shubham Tigga hails from Chhattisgarh and studied journalism at the Asian College of Journalism. He previously reported in Chhattisgarh on Indigenous issues and is deeply interested in covering socio-political, human rights, and environmental issues in mainland and NE India.
Presently based in Pune, he reports on civil aviation, other transport sectors, urban mobility, the gig economy, commercial matters, and workers' unions.
You can reach out to him on LinkedIn ... Read More