9000-ton ship near Juhu Beach needs to be moved. But how?

Mumbai: It had turned into a major attraction at Juhu Beach. And this afternoon the merchant vessel Wisdom drew bigger crowds than ever in Mumbai as the Navy began salvage operations that, if successful, will allow the ship to slowly be moved away.

The MV Wisdom - a massive cargo ship - was on its way from Colombo to the Alang shipyard in Gujarat to be dismantled when its engine failed. Then, the cable to its tow-boat collapsed. It drifted dangerously close to the Bandra-Worli Sea link and then ran aground at Juhu Beach on Saturday. Some reports say the Wisdom, owned by a company in Singapore, weighs 9,000 tons.

Naval helicopters dropped steel cables and equipment onto the MV Wisdom so that Smit Salvage Company, headquartered in Rotterdam, can get to work. The cables will be attached to a tug-boat so the ship can be moved to Alang.  

But that won't be easy. Environmentalists worry that the presence of the Wisdom is ominous for Mumbai's coastline. The effort to tow a 9000-ton ship can damage the ship's hull, causing the ship to sink. Toxic material from a shipwreck could poison the waters near Juhu, affecting the ecology and fishermen's livelihood. If the ship stays beached near Juhu, it could alter wave patterns. But trying to break up the ship at the present location is dangerous and expensive.  

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