Says this money should go to Directorate General of Shipping
the goan I network
CURCHOREM
Opposition Leader and Quepem MLA Chandrakant (Babu) Kavlekar assured that he will take up the matter in the forthcoming assembly session.
Vaz was speaking during the International Day of Seafarers celebrated by Goan Seaman Association of India (GSAI) on Sunday. This year’s theme is ‘Seafarers Matter’.
When asked about the welfare fund issue, Vaz explained that since 1974 Indian retired seamen are getting Rs 200 monthly from seafarers welfare fund which is run by NUSI. This structure comes under the Ministry of Shipping. “The deduction of 10 dollars goes to the seafarers’ welfare fund under NUSI and we get the benefit after 50 years. Seafarers don’t get facilities like hospitals and scholarships for their children,” said Vaz.
He said the monthly deduction 10 dollars of about 70,000 seamen works out to Rs 30 to 40 crore annually. “We don’t want this money to go to the seafarers’ welfare fund. Our demand is that this amount should go to the Directorate General of Shipping so that the government can give this money to us in the form of pension and other facilities.”
MLA Kavlekar assured that he will take up the matter in the forthcoming assembly session and demand an increase in the seafarers’ pension from Rs 2,500 to 5,000 per month.
“The government needs to protect the seafarers as they are helping the government by looking for their own employment and not asking for government jobs,” he said.
About 10 retired seamen from Quepem constituency, Jose Colaco, Xavier D’Cunha, Conceicao Cardoso, Anthony Mascarenhas, A Mascarenhas, Caitano Fernandes, Philomena Carneiro, Neudado Fernandes, Jose Basilio Azavedo and Inacio S Pereira were felicitated for their long service at sea.
Association member, Gabriel Pinto urged working seamen to join the organization to safeguard their interests.
