The country's maritime administration has directed shipping companies to pay four years' arrears on account of their mandatory contribution to the Seafarer's Welfare Fund. Under the National Maritime Board agreement, Indian shipping companies are required to pay annually Rs 4,800/seafarer on sea-going ships and Rs 2,400/seafarer employed on costal and offshore vessels, to the welfare fund.

In a notice sent to the Indian National Shipowners' Association, the apex body of Indian shipping companies, the Director General of Shipping said currently the society is receiving only one third of the amount due from the ocean going ships. And there is virtually no contribution from coastal and offshore ships. The fund is managed by the Seafarers Welfare Fund Society, headed by the Director General of Shipping. Currently, the society has a corpus of around Rs 175 crore.

The society undertakes various welfare schemes, including monthly ex-gratia payment to medically unfit seafarers, widows of seafarers died in accident and advance payment to seamen of companies which are in financial difficulties or gone into liquidation.

Shipping companies, in their bilateral agreement with unions, has agreed to make this payment. The present corpus is insufficient to run the welfare schemes, the notice said. The Director General of Shipping has directed shipping companies to pay the arrears from 2007 to 2011. An official of INSA said its member-companies have been making their payments regularly. There is an issue of payment of Rs 500 levy, which is being sorted out. There could be dues by non-INSA members, he said.

>kurup@thehindu.co.in

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