Boat which ran aground on Kudagiri ordered to pay fine

The Civil Court today ordered the owner of an Indian vessel which ran aground on the Kudagiri reef of Kaafu atoll's Thilafushi island, to pay an MVR three million fine to the Maldivian government within 14 days.

The 'AM MSV Maria Sinthayathirai Riana' ran aground onto the Kudagiri reef on 31st January, 2024. Following this, Maldives' Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the fine of MVR three million.

However, the vessel's owner failed to make the payment within the duration allocated. This prompted the matter to be escalated to the Civil Court, where the boat's owner, a company named SMT. T. Senjita, and the boat's Maldivian agent, Big Wave Private Limited were sued.

In today's hearing, the Civil Court issued the order in absentia of the defendants, who failed to respond to the court summons.

As such, the court ordered the defendants to pay the total fine of MVR 3,098,710 within 14 days.

At the time of the incident, EPA said that the report submitted by the owner of the vessel showed that it caused 130 square metres of damage to the reef.