The Hindu Business Line : Maritime administration needs shoring up

IT MAY seem unbelievable, but it is true. Though the Indian shipping fleet has grown 15 times since Independence, the number of marine surveyors who perform a wide variety of tasks, has risen by a measly 16. And this uneven growth has been affecting the quality of Indian shipping and maritime training.

At the time of Independence, when the Indian fleet was barely 0.5 million DWT, there were some 50 surveyors in the maritime administration. Today, the fleet strength has touched the 7.5 million DWT mark, but the number of such officers is 66.

Considering that these officers handle the vital task of supervising the implementation of the Merchant Shipping Act, industry observers feel that lack of adequate attention to this aspect could further smear the image of Indian shipping in the global arena, especially at a time when maritime trade is booming.

This small group of officers, at present, handles 50 different types of works, ranging from examination and institute inspection to implementation of ISM code, plan approvals, casualty inspection aboard ocean-going vessels, Flag State inspection and implementation of Port State Control (PSC) regulations.

Industry observers say that there are still ports, such as Kandla, Paradeep and New Mangalore, which do not have dedicated surveyors; officers are sent to these ports on deputation whenever the need arises. One clear fall-out of the lack of adequate machinery in this department is the increasing detention of Indian vessels in foreign ports under PSC the last few years.

Last year, the performance of Indian ships was not good in this context; India remained on the `Black List' of Paris MoU and the `Grey List' of Tokyo MoU. In the first three months of 2004, there were nine detentions, including of vessels belonging to Shipping Corporation of India, Essar, Sanmar and Surendra, which brought Indian ships under the US Coast Guard watch-list.

Realising that if this trend continued, Indian ships could well be banned from operating in the US, Paris and Tokyo MoU regions, the Directorate-General of Shipping had initiated a campaign in April to shore up the falling standards of maintenance, house-keeping and safety on board Indian vessels.

"Thanks to this campaign, the rate of detention has come down drastically, but had there been a stronger supervisory machinery this could have been avoided altogether. In the UK, there are different departments handling different tasks — there are dedicated examiners, dedicated surveyors and dedicated casualty inspectors," an industry observer tracking maritime administration in India told Business Line.

Though this aspect has been brought to the higher echelons of the Ministry of Shipping, little has happened to improve the situation. Now, however, there appears some hope as, for the first time, the draft policy for Maritime Sector, prepared by the Ministry of Shipping in August, provides a sharp focus on this aspect.

The draft policy proposes opening regional Mercantile Marine Department (MMD) offices, headed by a Principal Officer, in eight main maritime States to strengthen the maritime administration.

Further, a full-fledged Shipping Master's office has been suggested for all major ports so that seafarers can get CDCs issued without having to come to Mumbai.

More important, the draft policy speaks of increasing the strength of ship surveyors on a "rational and realistic formula" so that a minimum of 20 per cent of foreign flag chips calling at Indian ports and 15 per cent of Indian flag ships, both foreign going and coastal, are mandatorily inspected.

Other proposals in the draft policy include establishment of a Maritime Accident Investigation Bureau in view of the increasing risk of marine accidents including oil spills, and the setting up of a uniformed Marine Police Force wherever necessary.

Industry observers feel that implementation of these proposals would go a long way in improving the maritime administration in India, which in turn would have a positive impact on the country's image abroad.