The Notice to Mariners · The Cartographer's Daughter · Pulse Beat
The notice appeared in the October bulletin, a single paragraph in small type. CAUTION. Karimpara Point, Maravanthe. A rock shelf, depth 1.2 metres at chart datum, lies 1.4 nautical miles NNW of the…
The notice appeared in the October bulletin, a single paragraph in small type.
CAUTION. Karimpara Point, Maravanthe. A rock shelf, depth 1.2 metres at chart datum, lies 1.4 nautical miles NNW of the lighthouse and is not shown on existing charts. Surveyed by I. Varma and Cdr. K. Iyer (retd.). Vessels should avoid the area until further notice.
It was dull. It was precisely what a notice to mariners should be: short, factual, unarguable. Within a week every harbour master on the coast had pinned it to a board. Within two, the insurers at Lloyd's agency in Mumbai had read it, and a quiet, urgent letter had gone from a London underwriter to Marlow and Krish.
We note a published navigational warning regarding the proposed approach to your Maravanthe terminal. In light of this we are unable to confirm cover for vessels using the channel until an independent survey has been completed.
Nobody told Isha. She learned it from Dev, who telephoned from a village near Pune, laughing and crying at once. "They've stopped," he said. "Everything. They can't insure it."