The Hindu Business Line : <I>Replica of old Swedish ship may visit Chennai</I>

The centuries-old ties between India and Sweden are likely to be rekindled once again at the Chennai port. Come February, the port city is likely to play host to a replica of an 18th century Swedish ship that is currently sailing around the globe to promote Swedish business and cultural interests.

The original ship ran aground in September 1745, fully laden with goods such as tea and porcelain just as she was about to complete the third voyage from China that had lasted almost 30 months. Divers who descended to the seabed in December 1984 found that there was not much left of the ship.

What followed was a six-year long marine archaeological excavation that ended in 1992, opening the door to a century gone by, of adventurous voyages and Swedish trade with China. It also awakened the dream of rebuilding the ship.

The reconstructed ship is one of the largest full-rigged wooden sailing ships in the world and meets international safety standards for ocean going vessels.

The reconstructed ship, with modern machinery and a majority of the advanced technical equipment concealed deep in the hull, is based on modern research and the revival of the traditional methods of craftsmanship of the 18th century.

Chennai connection

The proposed stop in Chennai will revive memories of a time gone by as there is evidence to show that the Swedish ship Gotha Leijon was in Surat between September 1750 and February 1751.

The reconstructed ship that is currently in China is expected to sail from Hong Kong towards the end of the year and could visit Chennai on its way back to Sweden. The ship's official Web site states that the vessel would visit Singapore and then move on to Malaysia for a proposed 10-day stop.

From there it proposes to continue its journey to India before heading home through the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean. After a port call in London, the ship it scheduled to reach home-port Goteborg in autumn 2007.

"The ship is very likely to come to Chennai from Singapore. However, a final decision on whether and when the ship will come will be taken shortly," a senior official of the Swedish Embassy in New Delhi said.

The possibility of the ship visiting Surat was also explored but this was unlikely to happen now, sources indicated.

Officials are tight-lipped on what could be planned around the visit of the ship to Chennai, though during the ship's visit to China several Swedish cultural and company-related activities were conducted.

Buoyant trade

The ship's visit comes at a time when Indo-Swedish trade is on the upswing. "Swedish exports to India have increased by 42.5 per cent during this year . We are likely to see to touch $1.7 billion during the year.

Today, there are more than 100 Swedish companies including Ericsson, IKEA, Volvo and ABB, of which at least 85 are incorporated here," said Mr Fredrik Fexe, the Swedish Trade Commissioner to India.

Indian companies have also shown an interest in investing in Sweden with Wipro and Bharat Forge registering a presence there. Meanwhile, to meet the increasing demand from Swedish and Indian companies, the Swedish Trade Council has recently opened an office in Bangalore.

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