Bombay Photo Images[ Mumbai]: Mumbai-Goa ship service on Mormugao Port Trust anvil

NN | Jul 6, 2013, 02.32 AM IST

VASCO/PANAJI: The Mormugao Port Trust (MPT) is pursuing plans to start a Mumbai-Goa passenger boat service before the commencement of the next tourism season.

The proposal is amongst other plans that the MPT has on its anvil that includes encouraging cruise agents to begin a yacht service, and increasing the number of cruise liners visiting the port.

If everything goes as per plan, then the next tourism season will also see Goa become the second state in the country to start a seaplane service. MPT chairman P Mara Pandiyan said that many tourists visiting the state want to experience the sea plane service and MPT wants to encourage these services at the port.

Pandiyan also held a meeting with 10 top cruise operating agents in the country on Friday.

"We have told the cruise operating agents that if they are willing to begin the sea plane services in the state then MPT will provide all the facilities and help to begin the seaplane services at port," Pandiyan said.

Pandiyan also informed the agents that MPT has now dedicated a low depth berth where yachts can be anchored as there is no dedicated berth for yachts even in Mumbai.

MPT has also written to Mumbai Port Trust to identify a company which can resume the Goa-Mumbai passage ship service which was stopped a decade ago.

"We will even give concession in berthing fee for passenger ship operators so that the operator does not have difficulty to start operations," he added.

MPT also wants to start 'home porting' in Goa. Home porting means tourists across the world can come to Goa by ship which will be anchored at MPT and travel across the country by boarding aircraft from the nearest airport.

"Many passengers can come from the different parts of the world by ship at MPT and they can visit the country by boarding the aircraft at Dabolim airport which is less then 5km from the seaport," the MPT chairman said.

He said that last year, MPT received 31 cruise ships and to increase numbers, it has assured cruise agents that it will provide all necessary facilities.

Mumbai To Goa By Ship

www.mumbaitogoa.in/‎

Mumbai and Goa, two of the most attractive cities in the whole of India. The former attracts people because of its widespread opportunities in all fields of work like the film industry or the software industry and the latter attracts people with its beautiful and snow white colored sand beaches. The former is one of the most populous cities in India and the latter is a small beauty paradise. Both being situated on the coasts, thus enable Cruise and ship travels between them. The Mumbai - Goa sea route opened many options for travelers to travel through the sea by a boat or a private Catamaran or using a ferry service or by a luxury ship or cruise.
	There have been entries and exits of many big foreign companies and investors in this cruise business from Mumbai to Goa by ship. Star Luxury Cruise Ship and the famous European cruise ship company ‘Blue Ocean Luxury’ have been ones that set up excellent cruise services for this route but due to their internal affairs had to wind up mid way. The Mumbai to Goa by ship travel was first noted in the period of 1960’s to 1970’s when some streamers carried passengers along the Konkan coastline from Panajii to Mumbai. In 1994 a Mumbai to Goa by ship booking Catamaran service was started that travelled a distance of 40 km on the offshore lines so that the passengers could enjoy the Konkan coast palms and in the process it would take around 7 hours to reach the coast of Mumbai from Goa or vice versa. This could have formed an excellent option as far as the Mumbai to Goa by ship 2012 is concerned.
The Mumbai to Goa travel by ship price or cruise is currently not available because the safety of the passengers comes first. And previously having experienced a little risk in the travel path, the Government decided to close the sea travel option for the passengers. However, when the Sea travel was open and a special attraction for the passengers, there were ships that travelled twice a week from one coast to another and there was a scope for every class of person to be able to travel: • The Mumbai to Goa by ship booking had to be done in advance because of the large number of passengers and only twice a week schedule of the ship. • The Mumbai to Goa by ship fare was divided as per the travel class in the cruise or the ship that ranges from the very high class to the normal class, thereby the variation of prices was from Rs 7,000 to Rs 33,000 per person per night of the cruise. In the Mumbai to Goa by ship 2012 scenario, the government of Goa has stopped the sea travel and thus we all will have to be hopeful that the beautiful sea route is opened again in the future for everyone to enjoy.

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Plans to start Goa to Mumbai passenger liner - Times Of India

articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com › Collections › Ferry Wharf‎

by andrew Pereira
Nov 21, 2010 - PANAJI: Those days are remembered with nostalgia by many who travelled aboard the Konkan Shakti and the Konkan Sevak. Twenty-two ...
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1960'S PASSENGER SHIPS TO GOA

ASIATIC STEAM NAVIGATION COMPANY LIMITED.

(Source: Acknowledgement: W. Laxon & World Ship Society.)

F.J. Waddington & D. Beedle.

Formed in 1878 the Asiatic Steam Company was operated by the Liverpool merchant house of Turner & Co and their Calcutta associates, Turner, Morrison & Co. Initially the company operated in the Bay of Bengal and although its ships were registered in either London or Liverpool its principle port of operation was Calcutta. Like British India’s eastern service ships once they had departed the United Kingdom they were never to return. The new company enjoyed the patronage of Messrs Thomas H. Ismay and William Imrie of Ismay, Imrie & Company, managers of Oceanic Steam Navigation Company known in the shipping world as the White Star Line. The influence of Ismay and Imrie manifested itself not only by the blue star flown on the company’s house flag but more significantly by the fact that for the first twenty years of its operational life all the company’s ships were built at White Stars builders, Harland & Wolff of Belfast.

The chosen nomenclature of Asiatic was that of Indian nobility and the first four ships built for the company were Shahjehan and Shahzada built in 1878 and Maharaja and Maharani built in 1879.Principally the ships design was for the carriage of cargo and coolies with little accommodation for first class passengers provided, its service at the outset was from its home port of Calcutta south around various smaller Indian ports and then north up to Bombay, again calling at ports en route, later Chittagong, Rangoon and Moulmain were added to its itinerary.

MAHARANI.

©WSS

Built: 1879 by Harland & Wolff Ltd, of Belfast.
Tonnage: 1,667 grt, 1,047 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Steam, 2 x Cylinder Compound by D. Rowan of Glasgow.
Broken in Bombay in February of 1908.

The company increased its fleet to five in 1880 when Peshwa the company’s first 2,000 tonner was launched and two years later a further two ships were added to its number on the completion of Nurjahan and Kohinur the company’s first all steel ships.

NURJAHAN.

©WSS

Built: 1884 by Harland & Wolff Ltd, of Belfast.
Tonnage: 2,967 grt, 1,936 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Steam, 2 x Cylinder Compound by Builder.
Wrecked near Cape Comorin whilst on passage Bombay to Calcutta on the 21st of November 1890.

Thomas Ismay undertook an extensive tour of the company’s theatre of operations in 1887 after which it was decided to upgrade the fleet and three further ships were ordered for delivery in 1889/90, Nawab, Nadir and Nizam, all over 3,000 tons and all equipped with triple expansion engines.

NADIR

©WSS

Built: 1889 by Harland & Wolff Ltd, Belfast.
Tonnage: 3,142 grt, 2,041 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion by builder.

Nadir was sold to T. Uda of Hamdera in 1912 and became Temmei Maru, a year later she was sold to Hakuyo Kisen Kabushiki Kaisha of Ushioye and retained her name. Sunk by torpedo when on passage in the Mediterranean on the 10th of August 1916. 1890 proved to be something of a disaster for Asiatic when Peshwa was wrecked on the Pilot’s Ridge when on passage from Calcutta to Rangoon on the 24th of June, and Nurjahan was wrecked five months later. Consequently the company ordered two replacement vessels, Nurani and Nairung both over 4,000 tons for delivery in 1892 and on their delivery Asiatic’s fleet stood at ten ships. The company decided to increase its sphere of trading and began operating services to Java and was also successful in tendering a contract with the Government to carry mails to the Andaman Islands, however there was a downside, they also became responsible for the transportation of convicts to the penal settlement at Port Blair situated on South Andaman.

PRISON CELLS BELOW DECK
©D. BEEDLE.

As the decade came to a close Asiatic transferred its allegiance from Harland & Wolff to Charles Connell & Company of Glasgow for its three ‘R’ class ships, Rajah, Ranee and Rajput all weighing over five and a half thousand tons, the engines were supplied by Dunsmuir & Jackson also of Glasgow.

In 1902 two further ships were added, Pasha and Pundit, each over 5,900 tons and they were to remain the largest ships the company were to build until 1959. 1904/5 the company sold on for further trading four of its oldest vessels, Shahzada, Maharaja, Shahjehan and Kohinur, they were replaced by ships carrying the same name.

Although Thomas Ismay had died in 1899 the Ismay’s still retained an interest in Asiatic and his son, Bruce, was elected Chairman in 1907, after the Titanic’s sinking in April of 1912 and its subsequent inquiry Bruce Ismay virtually disappeared from the public’s eye though he still remained Chairman of Asiatic until 1934. Ismay oversaw the building of Bahadur and Begum in 1907 both intended for the longer trade routes but it was to be another five years before they were joined by Havildar, Risaldar and Subadar bringing Asiatic’s fleet up to seventeen ships. By now Ceylon and Malaya had entered onto the company’s trade routes with principle cargoes being made up of teak, coal, sugar, rice and of course its usual carriage of native deck passengers.

DECK PASSENGERS MIDSHIP
©D. BEEDLE.

DECK PASSENGERS TWEEN DECK. ©D. BEEDLE.

DECK PASSENGERS SLEEPING ARRANGEMENTS.
©D. BEEDLE.

Asiatic sold the last of its two Harland & Wolff built ships, Nurani and Nairung, to the Bombay & Persia Steam Navigation Company in 1914 and replaced them with Nizam and Nawab both Connell built and purchased a further two, Sikh and Dogra from the yard of Russell & Co, Port Glasgow. Because it traded in India and the Far East Asiatic suffered no war losses until its vessels were requisitioned by the Government. Kohinur was its first loss when she was sunk in the Mediterranean on the 2nd of May 1917, six weeks later; Pasha was torpedoed and sunk when in the Straits of Messina on the 15th of June. In 1918 the company lost its final two ships of the conflict when Begum was torpedoed and sunk in the May and Pundit suffered a similar fate in the June, Begum when 270 miles south west of Bishops Rock, Pundit 85 miles north west of Alexandria.

PUNDIT

©D. BEEDLE.

Built: 1919 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson, Ltd, Newcastle.
Tonnage: 5,305 grt, 3,199 nt.
Engine: Single screw triple expansion by builder.

Was originally laid down for the Shipping Controller as War Moose but Asiatic purchased her on the stocks and completed as Pundit. In the photograph Pundit is seen after arriving at Trivandrum which is situated on the south west tip of India to anchor for loading and discharge into barges and surf boats. Unfortunately during the anchorage manoeuvre Pundit struck the jetty and subsequently killed a bystander. She was eventually sold to Indian shipbreakers and was scrapped in Bombay in 1949.

The first two ships the company purchased to replace lost tonnage was from the Shipping Controller, they were Swan, Hunter standard types built in Newcastle and named War Chamois and War Moose, the company named them Pasha and Pundit respectively. At this juncture Turner & Co transferred its office to London, to date the company’s ships had always been registered in Liverpool, from this moment on their port of registration was to be London.

BEGUM.

Photo dated November 1951.
©D. BEEDLE.

Built: 1922 by Lithgows, Ltd, Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,843 grt, 3,656 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion by J. G. Kincaid & Co., Ltd, Greenock.
Arrived for breaking by Hughes Bolckow Shipbreaking Co., Ltd, Blyth on the 27th of February 1953.

The next two ships completed were Kohinur and Begum, built at Lithgow Ltd., formally Russell & Co, Port Glasgow. A year later a further two ships were completed by Charles Connell, Nurjehan and Nurmahal.

NURJEHAN.

©WSS.

Built: 1923 by Charles Connell & Co., Ltd, Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,424 grt, 3,379 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion by Dunsmuir & Jackson, Ltd.

Arrived at Bo’ness for breaking by P. &. W. McLellan, Ltd on the 2nd of May 1953.

RAJPUT

Photograph dated July 1947.
©D. BEEDLE.

Built: 1925 by Lithgows Ltd, Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,521 grt, 3,391 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion by D. Rowan & Co., Ltd.

Sold to Hokkaido Gyogyo Kosha K.K., Hakodate and renamed Terutama Maru in 1952, sold again in 1961 to Taiyo Gyogyo K.K. of Hakodate and retained her name, finally sold for breaking in Nagasaki in 1963

In 1925 the company returned to its pre war strength when they took delivery of Rajput from Lithgow’s and two years later Maharaja relieved her namesake on the Andaman mail run, the original ship being sold to Japanese owners becoming Zuisho Maru, the ship was eventually sunk by a US submarine in 1944 off the Ryuku Islands. Two years later Shahzada foundered 40 miles off the Sandheads when on passage from Calcutta to Akyab with a loss of twenty three lives, this was to be the company’s third and final peacetime marine loss in its history.

MAHARAJA.

Photograph dated March 1956
©D. BEEDLE.

Built: 1927 by Lithgows, Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 2,895 grt, 1,716 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion by Rankin & Blackmore Ltd.

Sold in 1956 to Ebony S.S. Co. of Hong Kong with Wheelock Marden & Co., as managers, renamed Jennifer a year later. In the same year sold to Hong Kong Fir Shipping Co., and renamed Malaya Fir. Sold to the Republic of Indonesia in 1961 and renamed Adri 1X, eventual fate unknown.

Asiatic continued to increase the size of its fleet with the introduction of Ranee in 1928 followed by Subadar and Bahadur in 1929. With the advent of the great depression Asiatic was affected in exactly the same way as other shipping concerns and rather than build new tonnage it was seen as a time to consolidate and make do with what was available, however the company saw fit to dispose of five of its oldest steamers to the breakers, three to Japan, (Dogra, Havildar and Sikh) and one each to India and Scotland, ( Shahjehan and Risaldar).

British India Steam Navigation Co, Ltd., acquired a controlling interest in Asiatic in November of 1934 and retained Turners as the company managers. Even with the winds of change omnipresent in the Far East the Asiatic ordered two new ships from Lithgows but with the intervention of war neither were delivered, however they did during the war take delivery of seven from the same yard between 1941 to 1944. As with other shipping company’s Asiatic’s services were severely disrupted by the war, not only by the enforced requisition of its vessels but its continued loss of the same, during the war the company were to lose eight of its ships which included three of its newbuilds.

First to be sunk was the 1922 built Kohinur when she was torpedoed 250 miles south of Freetown on the 15th of November 1940, Ranee was soon to follow when she fell victim to a mine when in the Suez Canal on the 5th of February 1941.

RANEE SUNK IN SUEZ CANAL
©WSS

Subadar became a casualty of the Japanese invasion of Malaya and Singapore when along with many other allied ships she made a run for either Batavia or Australia and was caught by Japanese bombers when in the Banka Strait on the 13th of February 1942. Bahadur was sunk on the 7th of April 1942 170 miles north west of Bombay in the Arabian Sea by a combination of gunfire and torpedo and in the same year Nurmahal was sunk by torpedo 200 miles north east of Barbados en route to New York via Trinidad, 11th of November. Shahjehan, only a year old was torpedoed on the 6th of July 1943 and sank the following day when 150 miles north east of Benghazi, Libya. Shahzada lasted a year longer than her sister when she was sunk on the 9th of July 1944 by torpedo 500 miles west of Goa. The final company loss was on the 18th of August 1944 when Nairung was torpedoed and sunk by U-862 with a loss of all onboard. Two ships managed by Asiatic, Empire Indus and Robert F. Hoke for the M.o.W.T. were caught in the Fort Stikine tragedy in Bombay on Friday the 14th of April, 1944, a full account of the story can be found on the BI section of this site entitled Bombay Explosion.

SUBADUR

Built: 1929 by Lithgows Ltd., Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,424g, 3,397n.
Engine: Single screw; triple expansion three cylinder by D. Rowan & Co., Ltd.

Bombed and subsequently sunk in the Banka Strait by Japanese aircraft on the 13th of February 1942.

BAHADUR

Built: 1929 by Lithgows Ltd., Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,424g, 3,397n.
Engine: Single screw; triple expansion three cylinder by D. Rowan & Co., Ltd.

Sister ship of Subadur, sank by torpedo and gunfire from unknown submarine on the 7th of April 1942, 170 miles north west of Bombay in the Arabian Sea.

HAVILDAR

Built: 1940 by Lithgows Ltd., Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,407g, 3,184n.
Engine: Single screw; triple expansion three cylinder by Rankin & Blackmore Ltd.

First tonnage built by Asiatic for eleven years and at their favoured Lithgows yard. She survived the war and was finally sold to the China Pacific Navigation Company of Hong Kong and renamed Amoy in 1960.

NADIR

Photograph dated May 1956.
©D. BEEDLE.

Built: 1944 by Lithgow’s, Ltd, Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,497 grt, 3,007 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion by Rankin & Blackmore, Ltd.

One of the four surviving ships from the seven built by Lithgow’s during the war Nadir was sold to China Pacific Navigation Co., Ltd, of Hong Kong in 1961 and renamed Kulangsu. Broken in Hong Kong in 1963.

SHAHJEHAN

Built: 1946 by Lithgows Ltd., Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,460 g, 3,210 n.
Engine: Single screw; triple expansion three cylinder by Rankin & Blackmore Ltd.

Sold in 1962 to the Hai An Shipping Co., Ltd of Hong Kong and renamed Nan An.

Although it suffered eight losses during the war Asiatic commenced its post war operations with fourteen ships, unfortunately by now four had reached the end of their economic lives and so the company embarked on a six ship build programme, as the ships came into service the company disposed of Nizam and Nawab both built during the 1st WW and Pasha and Pundit completed just after. The first two completed in 1946 were Shahjehan and Shahzada the fourth ships to carry the names of the company’s first two vessels, Bahadur followed in 1948.

LOADING COAL AT GARDEN REACH.

The following photographs were taken at Garden Reach jetties in 1947; to load 7,000 tons using local labour would take approximately two days, note in these photo’s there are no women or children present, whereas the norm was for them to be working alongside the men, also note the lack of footwear. After tipping the coal into the hold trimmers down below would spread it to the sides of the ship, I think its fair to say that conditions for the trimmers must have been quite appalling. After discharging their baskets the carriers would drop them on deck to be returned by yet more labour and proceed to the bunker station for another load, for their efforts remuneration was about four Rupees a day. Asiatic also took on the same cargo at Kidderpore Docks but here it took about six days to accomplish, however ancient hoppers that held about five tons often proved painfully slow and the more labour intensive method was preferred.

©D. BEEDLE.

©D. BEEDLE.

©D. BEEDLE.

BAHADUR

Photograph dated May 1954
©D. BEEDLE.

Built: 1948 by Lithgow’s Ltd, Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,497 grt, 3,244 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion with an L.P. Turbine by Rankin & Blackmore Ltd.

Still serving in 1963, current whereabouts unknown.

Bahadur on charter to B.I.

Subadar followed in 1949 as did Rajah with the final ship, Ranee, completed in 1950.

RAJAH.

Photograph dated July 1947
©D. BEEDLE.

Built: 1949 by Lithgow’s, Ltd, Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,791 grt, 3,362 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion with L.P. Turbine, by Rankin & Blackmore Ltd.

Still serving in 1963, current whereabouts unknown

RANEE.

Photograph dated April/May 1953.
©D. BEEDLE.

Built: 1950 by Lithgow’s, Ltd, Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 5,791 grt, 3,361 nt.
Engine: Single screw, Triple expansion with L.P. Turbine by Rankin & Blackmore Ltd.

Still serving in 1963, current whereabouts unknown.

The last four ships of the post war build programme, had, as an extra propulsion unit added an LP turbine, this increased their speeds by approximately three knots from their previous ships eleven knots.

Sadly the company’s optimism wasn’t matched by that of its traditional trading country’s, each wanted its own merchant navy manned by its own seafarers and many shipping company’s felt the bitter winds of change brought on by nationalistic fervour. Consequently Asiatic lost amongst others India, Burma and Java and had to travel further afield to earn its trade although its homeport remained in Calcutta. Some of Asiatic’s ships found themselves on charter to others operating within the P&O group and at the end of the fifties the company purchased its first motor vessel, an amazing achievement to have survived this long without diesels! Nurmahal was delivered in 1959.

DECK CARGO OF BUFFALO

©D. BEEDLE.

P&O acquired the remaining shares in Asiatic not held by British India in 1961 and the long-standing connection with Turner & Company through Turner, Morrison & Co., as its managing agents had been terminated a year earlier. It was said at the time that this would allow for closer cooperation in the workings of the groups ships and Asiatic was still able to maintain its identity and operations centred in the Bay of Bengal. The next two vessels that the company acquired, though only technically, for their registered owners were the New Zealand Shipping Company were Kohinur and Nurjehan.

KOHINUR

Built: 1963 by Charles Connell & Co. Ltd, Glasgow.
Tonnage: 10,039 grt, 5,851 nt.
Engine: Single screw, 5 x Cylinder Sulzer 2S C.S.A. by Barclay, Curle & Co. Ltd., Glasgow.

In P & O rationalisation programme she became Strathnairn and was scrapped in 1986 as Antilla.

NURJEHAN

©WSS

Built: 1963 by Lithgow’s Ltd, Port Glasgow.
Tonnage: 8,604 grt, 4,754 nt.
Engine: Single screw, 5 x Cylinder B & W 2S C.S.A. by J. G. Kincaid & Co. Ltd., Glasgow.

Whereabouts unknown.

When the reference book was written on Asiatic in 1963 by Bill Laxon the company was in its 85th year and I believe it existed until all those company’s included within the P&O group were absorbed totally in the parent company’s reorganisation and rationalisation. Any information on the missing eight years would be greatly appreciated.

Before the history on Asiatic had reached the research stage our site had been contacted by a gentleman who had actually joined the company as an apprentice in 1946. He’d seen one of the company’s ships, Ranee, featured on the British India section of the site beneath which I’d written what little information I could gather from my associates in BI, I’m afraid to say our joint assertions were incorrect and so I’m taking this opportunity to correct matters.

In the first year of his apprenticeship he was paid 15 Rupees per month, the second year 30 Rupees a month, third year 45 Rupees rising to 60 Rupees for the fourth year. The deck crew did not come from the Maldives but from the Laccadives, more specifically Minicoy Island which is about 200 miles west of Cochin, the engineroom crew came from the Nhoakali District of East Bengal (now Bangladesh), carpenters were Chinese and the cabin stewards were from Calcutta. The crew did not eat Curry and potatoes for breakfast but enjoyed a balanced diet including Mutton, vegetables and Rice and like all ships crewed by their ilk ‘live’ supplies were also carried for their consumption such as chickens and sheep which were slaughtered as required because the ships had no refrigerators, running water or air conditioning. The company employed a large percentage of local Officers that included Indian, Anglo-Indian, Burmese and Anglo-Burmese.

Nurmahal

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