East & West Steamship Company was one of the oldest locally owned shipping line in Pakistan until it was nationalised in 1974. Its ship, SS Fatima was the first ship ever registered at the newly established Port of Registry at Karachi in August 1948.[1] It was owned by the Cowasjee family. The company was resructured as the 'East and West Steamship Co. (1961) Ltd.' from 1961
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The following list consists of individuals who at one time were directors of the company.
The company served as agents for Nippon Yusen Kaisha, Tokyo, Japan and The Great Eastern Shipping Company Limited of Bombay (now Mumbai), India.[3]
| Ship | Built | In service for Company | Type | Tonnage | Reference | Fate | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SS Fatima | 1942 | 1948 - 1956 | Steel; cargo ship | 671 GRT | Broken up in March 1962[4] | Built as H.M.I.S. 'Shillong' (naval trawler) by Burn & Co. Ltd., Calcutta, converted in 1948 | |
| SS Figura | 1943 | 1948 - post 1959 | Steel; cargo ship | 482 GRT | Built as H.M.I.S. 'Cuttack' (naval trawler) by Burn & Co. Ltd., Calcutta, converted in 1949 | ||
| SS Firishta | 1942 | 1948 - post 1959 | Steel; cargo ship | 467 GRT | Built as H.M.I.S. 'Poona' (naval trawler) by Hooghly Dkg. & Engineering Co. Ltd., Calcutta, converted in 1948 | ||
| SS Fritha | 1942 | 1948? - post 1959 | Steel; cargo ship | 467 GRT | Built as H.M.I.S. 'Agra' (naval trawler) by Hooghly Dkg. & Engineering Co. Ltd., Calcutta, converted in 1948 | ||
| SS Forma | 1941 | 1948? - post 1959 | Steel; tug | 471 GRT | Built as H.M.I.S. 'Travancore' (naval trawler) by Garden Reach Workshop Ltd., Calcutta, converted in 1952 | ||
| SS Fravarta | 1942 | 1948 - post 1959 | Steel; tug | 445 GRT | Built as H.M.I.S. 'Karachi' (naval trawler) by Alcock, Ashdwon & Co. Ltd., Bombay, converted in 1949 | ||
| SS Firoza | 1913 | 1947 - 1966 | Steel; cargo ship | 4279 GRT | Broken up at Karachi in October 1966 | Built as 'Falls City' by Ropner & Co. Ltd., Stockton-on-Tees | |
| SS Firdausa | 1923 | 1949 - 1963 | Steel; cargo ship | 7938 GRT | Broken up at Karachi in April 1963 | Built as 'London Importer' by Furness S.B. Company, Haverton Hill | |
| SS Futura | 1919 | 1951 - 1960 | Steel; cargo ship | 6869 GRT | Broken up at Karachi in October 1960 | Built as 'Crosskeys' by Skinner & Eddy, Seattle | |
| SS Fausta | 1922 | 1951 - 1963 | Steel; cargo ship | 5055 GRT | Broken up at Karachi in October 1963 | Built as 'Schwarzald' by Deutsche Werft, Tollerort | |
| SS Fatakarda later Minocher Cowasjee | 1920 | 1950 - 1957 | Steel; cargo ship | 6,640 GRT[5] | Foundered in 1957[6] Reported 24/01/1957 in distress in position 25.30S 68.00E, on passage Dairen for Cape Town and Antwerp | Built as 'Parisiana' by Irvine's Shipbuilding & Drydocks & Co., West Hartlepool. Renamed from 'Fatakarda' to 'Minocher Cowasjee' in 1955. | |
| SS Fakirjee Cowasjee | 1925 | 1952 - 1967 | Steel; cargo ship | 5328 GRT | Broken up at Karachi in June 1967 | Built as 'Manchester Commerce' by Furness S.B. Company, Haverton Hill | |
| SS Feronia | 1940 | 1958 - 1970 | Steel; cargo ship | 5095 GRT | Broken up at Karachi in September 1970 | Built as 'Orient City' by Furness S.B. Company, Haverton Hill | |
| MV Rustom | 1953 | 1961 - 1974 | Steel; passenger & cargo liner | 9547 GRT | Broken up at Gadani Beach in November 1980 | Built as 'Santa Teresa' by Howaldtswerke, Hamburg | |
| MV Ohrmazd | 1968 | 1968 - 1974 | Steel; passenger & cargo liner | 11,046 GRT | Broken up at Gadani[2] Beach, arrived 6 July 1994 | Built by Burntisland Shipbuilding Company, Fife, Scotland |
The penalties imposed on the Burntisland Shipbuilding Company in Scotland for the delays in completion of the Ohrmazd in 1968 proved too much for the Scottish company and caused it to go into liquidation.[7]
The company's agent, M.N. Sidhwa was involved in an income tax court case in August 1962, which was decided against it.[8]
During the nationalisation drive of Prime Minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the company was merged into Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC). The owners took this nationalisation to court, whereby the Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled in their favour.[9] The Government assessed compensation at Rs. 97.012 million (2008).[9]