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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Kamble lusted for women, animals: Judgment

Mumbai: Pune rape-cum-murder convict Bhimrao Prabhakar Kamble, 65 - who was slapped with triple death sentences and triple life imprisonments - has emerged as a deeply depraved sexual predator who, according to the historic judgment of a Pune Special (POCSO) Court, spared neither women nor animals to satisfy his lust. The verdict records that he routinely "misbehaved" with farm animals and had once even attempted to have sexual intercourse with a goat. Special Judge S. R. Salunkhe sentenced...

Kamble lusted for women, animals: Judgment

Mumbai: Pune rape-cum-murder convict Bhimrao Prabhakar Kamble, 65 - who was slapped with triple death sentences and triple life imprisonments - has emerged as a deeply depraved sexual predator who, according to the historic judgment of a Pune Special (POCSO) Court, spared neither women nor animals to satisfy his lust. The verdict records that he routinely "misbehaved" with farm animals and had once even attempted to have sexual intercourse with a goat. Special Judge S. R. Salunkhe sentenced Kamble to be “hanged till death” and awarded life imprisonment on each of the principal charges of rape, murder and kidnapping, besides convicting him under various provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Describing the crimes as “brutal, inhuman and barbaric”, the court held that it fell within the “rarest of rare” category deserving the ultimate punishment. Hailing from Salwade village in Bhor taluka of Pune district, Kamble was notorious for persistently harassing women and exhibiting sexually deviant behaviour, eventually forcing villagers to socially ostracise and expel him years ago. Depraved Personality His disturbing conduct towards animals first surfaced in 1996, when he was grazing goats on a nearby hillock and allegedly attempted to have sex with one of them. He was caught in the act by another shepherd and the incident spread in the village like wildfire. Though Kamble is the father of seven daughters and one son, all now married, he was driven away from his family and the villagers after he was declared persona non grata. Thereafter, he drifted from village to village, surviving as a daily-wage labourer, taking up odd jobs for meagre wages and sleeping wherever he could find shelter. In 1998, he was accused of sexually harassing an elderly woman from his extended family and later in 2024, he again faced allegations of molesting his minor niece. Although he was acquitted in both cases, current investigators view a pattern in his long history of predatory behaviour. Labourer to Murderer Most recently, Kamble worked as a farm labourer by a farmer Sandeep Gayawal in Nasrapur, around six kms from his native Salwade. Gayawal had allowed him to sleep on a cot inside a tin storage shed adjoining a cowshed. From April 25, Kamble and five other labourers were engaged in transporting bricks for renovation work at a nearby Ram Temple. After discovering that Kamble had begun storing his personal belongings inside the tin shed, Gayawal ordered him to vacate the premises on April 30. On the morning of May 1, Kamble left his belongings near the temple and loitered around. It was there that he spotted the victim - a girl aged three years and two months - playing with other children, but subsequent events serve as a grim lesson to all parents who allow their children to play outside but fail to keep an eye on them. The victim and her six-year-old elder sister had come from Dhayari village, nearly 20 kms from Narsapur, to spend summer vacation with their grandmother. Belonging to a priest’s family, the grandmother performed all rituals and managed the temple since the death of her husband in 2022. Incidentally, Gayawal was their neighbour. One of his four cows had recently calved, and the victim, her sister and other neighbourhood children frequently visited the cowshed to play with the newborn calf, which was tethered beside the same tin shed where Kamble had been staying. Black Day On the afternoon of May 1, the children were playing hide-and-seek around the temple precincts when Kamble targeted the little girl. Waiting till she was left alone inside the temple, he hurled bricks and drove away the other children, before implementing his nasty and lusty plans. Investigators later pieced together, through CCTV footage and other forensic evidence, that over the next 39 minutes, Kamble committed the horrific sexual assault before murdering the child, and again indulging in sex with her body. Meanwhile, at around 4 pm, when the grandmother realised the child was missing, an extensive search began, and other residents combed through CCTV footage. Initially they spotted a man dressed in white carrying a large bag. Suspecting he had kidnapped the girl, the villagers intercepted him, only to discover that the bag contained nothing more than loaves of bread, and he was allowed to leave. Probe End Soon afterwards, officers from Rajgad Police Station joined the investigation. CCTV footage from a neighbouring property showed Kamble emerging from a public water tank area before approaching the Munjoba Temple, where he was seen taking the child's hand and leading her towards Gayawal's tin shed - the very place from which he had been evicted a day earlier – and 39 minutes later, the footage captured him walking out alone. Suspicious villagers eventually found Kamble sitting casually on a bench near the Kalubai Temple. During questioning by Gayawal and others, he confessed to the crime, terming it as ‘a mistake’ as outrage erupted all over the state.

Indian Shipbuilding A Must Win Marathon

Shipbuilding

With a coastline of 7500 KM, it is hard to imagine, that for the first 20 years (1947-1967) India had no ‘shipping ministry’. In 1967 a Shipping ministry “coupled” with ROAD transport was established. Since then, this ministry has been on a name changing ride, not once, not twice but six times. In 2009 the “ROAD Transport and Highways” was de-coupled and ‘Shipping’ ministry was formed. Turning point came in 2015 with a clear maritime vision for 2030 and 2047. Ministry was re-christened, aptly to Ministry of “Ports, Shipping and Waterways” in 2020.


Why is Shipbuilding important for a country?

a. A Shipyard becomes an opportunity hub and like a queen bee requires the support of an industrial colony to manufacture machinery and equipment.

b. National Shipyards support fleet renewal needs of the Navy.

c. Contributes to national GDP, increases inflow of FOREX.


Korea shipbuilding is 8% of GDP. Japan’s automobile industry is 2.9% of GDP. India’s shipbuilding a meagre 0.000578% of GDP. In context, India’s pharmaceutical industry, ranked third largest in the world is 1.72% of India’s GDP.


International Shipbuilding Market

The market is estimated to reach around USD 200 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 4.84%. While India is at bottom with 0.07% of world share, behind Philippines 1.5% and Vietnam 1%, however on the positive side, India has done well in taking care of its defence needs, with 37 of 39 Naval ships being built in India yards. Rear Admiral S Shrikhande researching on maritime as a Fellow at Wollongong University, Australia, says “Shipbuilding in India needs both, serious incentivisation and dogged determination and not harping on being a big ship breaking country. That Garden Reach shipyard has a $54 million order for merchant ships from a German owner, is a good sign.”


Were Shipyards of 20th century in Flight mode?

Prominent shipyards in India were built in the colonial period. Mazagon Dock 1774, Garden reach 1884, Hindustan shipyard 1941 to cater to British navy and merchant fleet needs. Cochin shipyard 1972, Adani Katupalli 2013, Reliance Naval and Engineering, Rajula Gujarat 1997 and others have limited capacity, hence a lot more work to do. Capt. Subhangshu Dutt (Singapore) a mariner and now a shipowner, says “GOI should hold hands in any collaboration till the marriage with the foreign entity is reasonably stable. He also suggests that “new shipbuilding sites should be given to existing successful shipyards since they have decades of experience and talent. Consortium of 3 or more parties may also be good idea”.


Shipbuilding GOLD

As per SPLASH report the demand for LCO2 carriers could reach 2,500 ships by 2050. As per other estimates, 40% of global fleet of ships could have wind propulsion by 2050. A surge in such vessels is due to an unparallel waves of decarbonization in the shipping industry. Demand for ships with ‘carbon neutral’ badges, such as Dual fuel, Wind assisted, Nuclear fuel ships, Hydrogen powered ships, Liquified CO2 (LCO2) carrier, is outstripping supply. A must in the ‘bucket list’ of every Shipyard. Pinning down a standard ROI in shipbuilding is not easy, but experts suggest it could range from 4% to 15% for the high demand ‘carbon neutral’ ships. While an LNG new build vessel could cost US$ 250 million upwards.


International collaboration

On China’s shipbuilding success story, Manoj Pandalanghat (Singapore) a mariner and ship owner believes that “China has around 50 active Shipyards. Each have a few large dry docks. In each dock two or more large vessels are built simultaneously. Thus, a single yard is able to roll out 2/3 vessels/month, 36 vessels/year and 50 shipyards roll out 1800 vessels/year”.


China could be a jaldi-5, but India needs a sturdy Mount Fiji. Besides technology, Japanese bring the most important hand baggage of soft-skills and culture, essential for success from keel laying to delivery. Maruti’s is a standing example.


Food for thought for New Delhi

a. Expertise: Hire Naval Architects and shipbuilding experts with current international experience.

b. Government assistance: Land, Financial support, subsidies and timebound clearances.

c. Monitoring: PMO should monitor the first 5 to 10 years till Shipbuilding takes-off on this long-haul flight to destination 2047.


India’s Shipbuilding is expected to grow to $237 billion by year 2047. On a back of the envelope calculations this works out to about 4% of India’s 2047 projected GDP of $ 5 trillion. While cars are driven on roads, however the Ministry of roads and transport has little to do with “Automobile manufacturing”. On a similar note, ‘Shipbuilding’ as an industry has little to do with Ports, Shipping and Waterways, thus it may be worthwhile to consider a separate ‘Ship-building’ wing in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways headed by a dynamic cabinet rank minister. Since 2047 targets are stiff and an uphill task, so in all probabilities, the officials in Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways are likely to push beneath the carpet, delays and failures of Shipbuilding with sweet success stories of “Ports, Shipping and Waterways” and if this does happen then India will not only miss the Shipbuilding bus of 21st century but a lot more from a national security and strategic perspective.


(The author is a Shipping and Marine consultant. Member Singapore Shipping Association and empaneled with IMO as a specialist consultant. Views personal.)

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