Safety of Sailors is Paramount: State Min

State Minister for Shipping Khalid Mahmud Chowdhury has said that utmost importance is being given to the safety of sailors stranded in Ukraine.

"The biggest thing now is that the safety of the sailors is our first priority," he said. The Prime Minister has already taken up the matter. She also directed the other wings, including the foreign ministry, to take action on the issue.

He was speaking to reporters at his office in the Secretariat on Thursday (March 3) at noon.

"We have already contacted our embassy in Poland, said Mahmud. Bangladesh's Ambassador in Poland has talked to the secretary several times. He also spoke to the ship's captain. They also want to ensure their safety. If sailors disembark, security risks are likely to increase."

"We are trying to figure out if we can find a safer road," he said. Extensive activities are being carried out at the diplomatic level. Maybe I can get them out of there quickly.

Earlier on Wednesday (March 2) at 5:10 pm local time (9:30 pm Bangladesh time) a rocket attack on the ship 'MV Bangla Samridhi' of Bangladesh Shipping Corporation. The third engineer of the ship Mohammad Hadisur Rahman Arif lost his life.

Meanwhile, 26 people including sailors and engineers are still on board the ship. Sailors are spending their days in panic after a rocket attack on a ship. They have appealed to the government to save lives.

Meanwhile, the ship's second engineer Rabiul Awal said in a video message, "Our ship was hit by a rocket. One died. We have no power supply onboard. We are moving to the emergency power supply. We are all fighting with death. Please save us."

A ship named "Banglar Somriddhi" got stuck in Ukraine after the outbreak of war. The ship is owned by Bangladesh Shipping Corporation.

It departed from the Indian port of Mumbai on 26 January and reached the outer port of the Ukrainian port of Alvia on 22 February via the Turkish Irregular. The day after the ship arrived at the port, the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. They were supposed to go to Italy with raw ceramics from Ukraine.