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Our Bureau

Mumbai , March 21

THE National Shipping Board, the apex body advising the Ministry of Shipping on matters related to the shipping industry, will be taking up the issue of extending the present jurisdiction of Near Coastal Voyage (NCV) to the Persian Gulf. This was one of the suggestions made by the board at its 105th meeting held at Visakhapatnam last week, as part of its fresh initiatives to sharpen focus on development of coastal shipping in India.

At present, the NCV jurisdiction encompasses India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Maldives. "If this is extended to Persian Gulf, coastal shipping in India can get a significant boost," says Mr S.K. Shahi, Chairman and Managing Director of SKS (Ship) Ltd, a major Indian player in coastal shipping.

The Board will also press for duty-free bunkering and buying of spares for coastal vessels. "At present, the share of coastal shipping in India's transportation sector is very low, due to absence of level-playing field. Bunkering charges are prohibitively high at Indian ports, which has been stifling development of coastal shipping," says Capt Mohan of Seaways Shipping and a member on NSB.

However, a section of the industry feels that extending the NCV jurisdiction to Persian Gulf will not make any significant difference. "Right now, coastal vessels from India are carrying mixed cargoes to Persian Gulf, but after obtaining permission from the Directorate General of Shipping before any such voyage. After the jurisdiction is extended to the Gulf, coastal operators need not seek prior approval for the voyage from the DGS," an industry source said.

Capt Mohan said the NSB meeting also discussed the need for strengthening the infrastructure at the domestic shipyards. "With the boom in the global shipping industry, shipyards the world over are full. Domestic shipyards thus stand a good chance to get orders both from within the country as well as overseas," he said.

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