The Union shipping ministry has asked Dredging Corporation of India (DCI) to divert Darya Manthan, a hopper suction dredger, from Paradip to Haldia to tackle the crisis Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT) is facing for low draught conditions.

KoPT deputy chairman A Majumdar told FE that Darya Manthan would sail from Paradip Friday evening and take 18 hours to reach Haldia.

Darya Manthan, with a hopper capacity of 4,500 CBM, was made in China in 2007. It was acquired by Chennai-based Chellaram Shipping in the same year. Currently, it is under DCI control as a chartered vessel.

According to some KoPT officials, the prime minister called Union shipping minister GK Vasan, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee and railway minister Mamata Banerjee to a meeting after Haldia Dock Bachao Committee wrote a letter to the PMO seeking his intervention on the matters of draught that suspended KoPT?s main cargo handling arm Haldia Dock Complex?s operation on Monday night.

Vasan swung into action immediately and asked DCI to divert Darya Manthan from Paradeep to Haldia. Although Union shipping minister of state Mukul Roy was not at the meeting, he coordinated with DCI and KoPT officials.

Majumdar said: ? I am not aware whether the prime minister convened any meeting but DCI acted on the shipping ministry?s order.? Shipping as of now is normal in Haldia with draught at 7.3 metres in Auckland, the governing bar for navigational channels.

Although this is lower than the normal 7.5 metres, the required under keel clearance of 0.9 metres could be maintained, Majumdar said.

AK Bagchi, director marine, said the depth of the channels is taken every 15 days during nip tide and draught projections are accordingly made. As soon as Darya Manthan starts working, the draught situation is likely to improve.

With Darya Manthan, DCI will deploy seven dredgers in Haldia, though most of them are more than 30 years old and are operating at below 70% capacity. Darya Manthan will be the only dredger working at full capacity.

Majumdar said by October, two more effective DCI dredgers will arrive at Haldia from Vizag and Colombo and maintenance would go on at full swing. These two dredgers went for dry- docking for annual maintenance.

Ramakant Barman, coordinator of Haldia Dock Bachao committee, said although authorities are claiming otherwise, the situation is grim.

The last five-year contract drawn up between DCI and KoPT to desilt the channels was signed in May. DCI, selected on nomination basis, was asked to maintain a minimum depth of 4.5 metres at Jellingham and 5.0 metres at Auckland in Haldia. The total annual contract was of Rs 400 crore with DCI getting a 25% margin. But the present depths at Jellingham and Auckland as reported on September 14 are only at 4 metres and 3.5 metres respectively because, according to sources, DCI has not been regular in supplying good quality dredgers for the last three years.

The maintenance cost and fuel consumption of the old dredgers was quite high, thus increasing the dredging bill for Kolkata Port Trust but resulting in no effective dredging, Barman alleged.