123. Repatriation of seamen on termination of service at foreign port.- (1) When the service of a seaman or apprentice terminates without the consent of the aid seaman or apprentice at a port outside India, and before the expiration of the period for which the seaman was engaged or the apprentice was bound, the master or owner of the ship shall, in addition to any other relative obligation imposed on either of them by this Act, make adequate provision for the maintenance of the small or apprentice according to his rank or rating, and for the return of that seaman or apprentice to a proper return port. (2) If the master or owner fails without reasonable cause to comply with sub-section (1), the expenses of maintenance and of the journey to the proper return port shall, if defrayed by the seaman or apprentice, be recoverable as wages due to him, and if defrayed by an Indian consular office, be regarded as expenses falling within the provisions of sub-sections (3) and (4) of section 161. Explanation.- Inability to provide the said expenses shall not, for the purposes of this sub-section, be regarded as reasonable cause. |
