Kendrapara, Sep 3: Villagers from Satabhaya and surrounding areas in Odisha’s Kendrapara district were seen taking away various items from two containers that washed ashore on Monday. The containers, which drifted in from the Bay of Bengal, contained a wide range of goods, including food items, medicines, and daily-use products.
Locals rushed to the coast to collect the items such as foodstuffs, torches, umbrellas, clothing, sandals, and even air bags. Among the goods found were sarees, pants, shirts, mustard oil, fans, biscuits, water bottles, and Kurkure packets, said a villager.
Local forest officials from Satabhaya were alerted to the situation and arrived to assess the scene. The containers, belonging to ITT Lines Pvt Ltd, a Kolkata-based shipping company, were found to be broken open with their contents looted by the villagers.
The containers had been aboard the MV ITT Puma, a cargo ship registered in Mumbai, which sank approximately 80 km south of Kolkata on August 25 due to severe weather conditions. The ship, en route from Kolkata to Port Blair, had a capacity of 75 metric tons. The Coast Guard conducted a rescue operation, saving 11 crew members, though three remain missing.
Sudarshan Gopinath Jadav, the DFO of the Rajnagar Mangrove Forest and Wildlife Division, confirmed that the remaining items were seized by forest personnel. Patrols will be increased to restrict access to the area. To manage the heavy containers, forest officials are considering using JCB machines to relocate them safely, he added.
