The Scindia Steamship Navigation Co Ltd Bombay v Nippon Yusen Kaisha Ltd (The ‘Jalagouri’) - Court of Appeal (Henry, Brooke and Tuckey LJJ) - 28 March 2000

Time charter on NYPE form - Port authority preventing vessel from discharging damaged cargo until security provided for cost of storing or removing damaged cargo from port area - Whether vessel ‘detained’ - Whether charterers in breach of clause 8

The vessel Jalagouri was chartered on the 1946 NYPE form as amended for the carriage of a general cargo from Japan to India. A few days after sailing from her last loading port, the vessel suffered engine damage and collided with a breakwater. Water entered a hold in which a quantity of car components in cases was stowed. Following drydocking, the vessel proceeded to Kandla where she started to discharge on 18 October 1993. Discharge of the sound cargo was completed in three days, but it was then found that the cargo of car components had been damaged. The port authority would not allow discharge of that cargo, and the vessel was ordered off berth on 21 October. The port authority suspended discharge because it was not prepared to allow the damaged cargo to be landed unless it received a guarantee for the costs of storing or removing it from the port area. There followed exchanges between the parties about the guarantee. Eventually an acceptable guarantee was lodged and the vessel was then allowed to re-berth to complete the discharge of her cargo on 2 November 1993.