The good ship SS Rajula

 

SS Rajula (1926 - 1973) British India Line

In June 1971, on our way from Australia to England, Mitch and I had the pleasure of spending a memorable week on the good ship SS Rajula, from Penang in Malaysia, via Nagapattinam to Madras. This was a legendary, ancient and venerable old tub! I believe it was then the oldest passenger ship still operational under a British flag. 

We wanted to book the usual hippy option of deck passage, but the agents refused, saying it was too rough (physically and metaphorically!) for us westerners. Their story was that, due to the imminent monsoon, they could only take 3,000 deck passengers, not the usual 5,000! A 2 berth cabin wasn't very expensive, so we booked one - and found we were actually in "first class". Well, first class on the "Rajula" was a bit different - but at least included a porthole, and a bathroom. We also had all our meals with the officers. A good deal of alcoholic beverages was consumed - including lethal pink gins with the First Engineer! 

This was before containerisation, and the Rajula was definitely not a drive, drive off vessel, so we wondered how the Land Rover was going to get loaded aboard... 

By good old-fashioned harbour crane! With a big cradle and steel cables holding bars under the wheels. She was carrying a fair weight in the rear, so did not go up level. Very worrying! 

Once the Land Rover had been lowered into the hold, I had to go down to check she was suitably secured and locked. This involved shinning down a vertical ladder bolted to the decks - on which were many of the thousands of deck passengers. This was quite a surreal and exposed experience - rather like one imagines a slave ship must have been. 

Many passengers needed to disembark at Nagapattinam, south of Madras, but the Rajula was too big (9,000 tons, 26ft draught) to go into the harbour there, so we anchored offshore - and a convoy of local vessels soon came out to meet us. This was quite an event - a bit like being boarded by pirates, all shinning up and down ropes thrown over the side! As well as taking passengers and their cargo ashore, there were also many hawkers, who brought their wares aboard to tempt folk. We were warned to lock our cabins, and close all portholes! 

A couple of photos of the deck class passengers. 

Entering Madras harbour. On the rest of our trip to England we carried many stow-aways from the good ship SS Rajula - cockroaches!