The company, which is perhaps the only shipping company without a vessel, did not earn any net income in the fiscal. The other income from operations, however, increased by 103 per cent to Rs 1.5 crore (Rs 0.7 crore). The surplus on sale of assets was nil. The company had earned Rs 12.6 crore from the sale of assets during 1996-97. The total expenditure decreased to Rs 1.9 crore (Rs 13.46 crore).

The interest outgo stood at Rs 18.30 crore (Rs 17.8 crore). During the period, the depreciation proviso sharply declined to Rs 2 lakh from Rs 62 lakh. The government is in the process of selling off the real estate possessed by Scindia Steamship. The company possesses property worth Rs 340 crore in Mumbai. The proceeds from the sale will be utilised to repay government dues of around Rs 227 crore.

Scindia Steamship, whichwas set up in 1919 and once enjoyed the privilege of being the most successful shipping company in the country, is on the verge of closure. The company, which sold its last ship in 1997 to a shipbreaker, currently has only 18 employees.

"These people have also put in their papers", sources added. The company retrenched over 80 employees in 1997. The Scindia Workshop (SWL), a subsidiary of Scindia Steamship, still has 88 employees on the rolls. According to sources, SWL was forced to hand over its workshop at Mazgaon to the Mazgaon Dock (MDL) in May 1997 for a pittance, as the latter wanted the piece of land for defence purposes.