Prabhu Daya taken into custody

ALAPPUZHA: Merchant vessel ‘Prabhu Daya’  has been taken into  custody by a police team led by  Alappuzha DySP K Maheshkumar  for the hit-and-run incident which claimed the lives of  five fishermen off the Alappuzha coast on  March 1. The protection of the ship anchored off the Chennai coast was handed over to the marine police in Chennai.  The captain of the ship Perera Carten, a resident of Mumbai, second officer Sugathan from Thiruvananthapuram  and a seaman from Gujarat were found responsible for the incident, the DySP said.  Sugathan is the first accused  because he was in charge of surveillance  at the time of the accident, he said.The police department has begun steps to bring the ship to Alappuzha coast.  ‘’Director- General of Shipping is the final authority to decide whether the ship stays in Chennai or  should be brought to Alappuzha. The Mercantile Marine Department will submit its  final report to the DG Shipping on Thursday,’’ Maheshkumar  said.The investigation team from Alappuzha has been waiting in Chennai for further inquiry and arrest of the officials in the ship. Sugathan, who tried to commit suicide by jumping into the sea, was admitted to a hospital in Trincomalee.The police team questioned all crew members, but nobody owned up the responsibility, the DySP said.