Manjeshwar March 12, 2010: A ferry boat (barge) which was carrying construction material to Agatti Island near Lakshadweep sunk about 15 nautical miles from Manjeshwar in Kerala. All the Ten crew members including the captain of the barge were rescued by fishermen aboard another boat from Mangalore when the tragedy occurred.

According to the bunder police who have registered a case, the barge- Ghousia Samdani was owned by Hamid Yakub of Jam Salaya in Gujarat. It was going from Gujarat to Lakshadweep islands. What was the need of taking construction materials from Gujarat to Lakshadweep when Kochi and Mangalore were nearer than Gujarat is the question which is haunting the police now. The police have detained the crew members and were questioning them about the accident and their cargo.

The police told Mangalorean.com that its captain Yakub Ibrahim was being extensively questioned by them. Even the owner has been contacted in this regard. The crew say they were from Gujarat but some said they were from Lakshadweep islands. Initial investigations reveal that the barge sank after it developed a leak. When the fishermen from Mangalore found them the barge had already sunk and the crew were floating with the help of the life jackets and a life boat.

The barge had set out on sail on Friday after loading construction material from Bunder at a cost of Rs. 3 lakhs and the total loss was estimated at Rs. 50 lakhs.

The rescued crew members are Yakub Ibrahim(captain), Khasim Siddiq, Adam Abdulla, Adam Allararakha, Razak Yakub, Iss Sumhar, Ali Akbar Yakub, Talab Yakub, Hasan Talab, and Noor Mahamamd  Ibrahim.

Our Correspondent