New Delhi: India on Friday said that it would liaise with China to expedite the replacement of 16 Indian sailors stranded on a cargo vessel in Chinese territory for nearly four months. Is in 39 Indian crew members are stranded on two cargo ships in Chinese waters. External Affairs Ministry spokesman Anurag Srivastava said that MV Jag Anand has replaced the crew for sailors in Japan and Indian sailors are coming back to India.
“In the case of MV Anastasia, which has 16 Indian crew members and is anchored at the Cofedian port in China,” he told an online press conference. Our embassy in Beijing is in touch with both the Chinese side, its central government, and provincial levels to replace the crew members as soon as possible. ”
Srivastava said, “Our embassy is constantly working with both shipping companies as well as the concerned Chinese authorities to ensure the efficiency of the crew as well as to take the matter forward.”
Earlier this month, India sought “immediate, practical, and timely” assistance for the 39 Indian sailors stranded on both ships in view of the “severe human condition”. The Chinese authorities did not allow the ships to go to the dock or change crew members for months, citing Corona virus-related restrictions.
There are 23 Indian sailors aboard the Indian cargo ship MV Jag Anand and the ship has been anchored near Jingtang port in Hebei province, China since June 13 last year while MV Anastasia, along with 16 Indians, has been anchored at the Kofidian port since September 20.
When asked about the fishermen issue being a hurdle in India-Sri Lanka relations, Srivastava said that it has been on the agenda of discussion between the two sides and realized at the highest level that it is a humanitarian issue, which is considered humanely Have to solve
“There is a well-established bilateral mechanism to deal with the problem,” he said. On the status of the Colombo East container terminal project, Srivastava said, “We are in talks with the Government of Sri Lanka to take this project forward. We will be happy with the investment from India and Japan on the development of the East Container Terminal which has been selected by the current Government of Sri Lanka. ”
