Saravanan's Blog

Source: http://www.tamilnewsnetwork.com/2012/12/28/takasu-tamils-adversary-in-un-security-council/ Yukio Takasu, the 2009 President of the UN Security Council (UNSC) on the critical month of February, was o ne of the key UN officials who allegedly prevented Sri Lanka from being dragged into the UNSC for the unfolding mass scale killings in Mu’l'livaaykkaal, public statements made by UN officials during media stakes reveal. While some UN Security Council (UNSC) permanent members may have agreed with Takasu’a views, in a media stake out, Takasu lays out his "own" critical view of the "terrorist LTTE," and the primacy of political and security need to "defeat" the Tigers over imminent large scale civilian casualties. Political observers believe that Japanese cultural views on refugees, asylum seekers may provide clues to Takasu’s approach and conduct in the UNSC that led to the disastrous outcome for the Tamil refugees trapped in Sri Lanka’s civil w...

Published in Sagar Sandesh Maritime Weekly (edition dtd Dec 26, 2012) Source:www.sagarsandesh.com "I t is worth recalling here that Sagar Sandesh had been burning midnight oil by continuously publishing news articles about the plight of the 10,000-odd DNS cadets, who are yet to complete their courses for want of 18-month seatime." The Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) has dished out Christmas and New Year gifts to DNS cadets, who would be languishing in future begging for sea-time, by issuing a directive to the maritime institutes, which are eligible for admitting students for February-2013 Batch, to admit only ‘sponsored candidates.’ While the new condition on selection of candidates for the new batch would drastically reduce the intake for the season, it’s not going to provide any solace to the 10,000-odd students, stuck without sea-time training. In its latest circular, released on Dec. 17, to the 11 maritime institutes in the country that are allo...

Source:  http://netindian.in/news/ 2012 /12/24/00022552/indian- coast- guard-station- mayabunder- commissioned-north- andaman- islands Indian Coast Guard Station (ICGS) Mayabunder, the first in the North Andaman Islands,  was commissioned by Defence Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma today (Dec 24). An official press release said the station is part of ongoing efforts by the Coast Guard  to strengthen maritime and coastal security and the assets based at Mayabunder will help  augment patrolling along the Northern Group of Islands for safeguarding Indian maritime  interests.  Mr Sharma lauded the efforts of the Coast Guard in maintaining a high state of vigil in  the Andaman and Nicobar Islands resulting in apprehension of a large number of poachers  and saving of precious human lives during search and rescue operations.  He said that the implementation of the Coastal Surveillance Network project would be a  major milestone in ensurin...

Published in Sagar Sandesh, dtd Dec 19, 2012 edition Also at:http://www.sagarsandesh.com/news/imu-curbs-on-dns-course/ Taking a right step in the interest of safeguarding maritime education, the Indian  Maritime University (IMU) has decided to restrict admission for February 2013 DNS Batch  only for the sponsored candidates. In an e-mail reply to Sagar Sandesh on queries about the future of Common Entrance Test  (CET) for DNS Course, Mr. M. Anand, Registrar of IMU, said the University has received  an intimation on Dec. 14 evening from the Director General of Shipping  to restrict CET  – DNS for February 2013 Batch to the candidates sponsored  by the training institutes  only who would be required to have made the necessary tie-up for on-board training for  their candidates with shipping companies or ship manning companies (RPS).” Accordingly, the modalities to conduct CET for DNS by IMU will be promulgated at an  early date. It...

Source: http://www.ics-shipping.org PIC SOURCE: http://ocean-noise.com The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), which represents over 80% of the world merchant fleet, has issued a new position paper on Arctic shipping. As the Arctic becomes more accessible, ICS has set out some key principles with regard to the future governance of Arctic waters. Offshore support vessel activity is already significant, while destination shipping is anticipated to grow as the extraction of energy and raw materials is developed.  Use of the Northern Sea Route is also a reality for a small but increasing number of ships in the summer months.     ICS therefore stresses the importance of Arctic nations respecting the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and relevant IMO Conventions and Codes such as SOLAS and MARPOL. ICS Director of External Relations, Mr Simon Bennett explained: “As the volume of Arctic shipping gradually increases, t here ...

Published in Sagar Sandesh Maritime Weekly's Dec 12 (12-12-12) edition Source:http://www.sagarsandesh.com/epaper/ -Whereas the Titanic collided with an iceberg, the Costa Concordia hit an underwater rock -Trust in technology may in both cases have affected the attitude of the navigators of such ships By Capt S Bhardwaj  PIC courtesy:  http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/discussion/women-and-children-first/attachment/120119-titanic-sinking/ Titanic was supposed to be the ‘unsinkable’ then; Costa Concordia was also a masterpiece of modern technology. Despite more than 100 years of regulatory and technological progress in maritime safety, accidents do occur. Both the cases involved state-of-the-art cruise ships - although the same state and the stage have obviously changed dramatically in the 100 years in between. Whereas the Titanic collided with an iceberg, the Costa Concordia hit an underwater rock. In both the incidents the ships were subjected to an une...

Source: http://www.infowars.com/pearl-harbor-as-a-noble-lie/ Tim Kelly Infowars.com December 7, 2012 Soon after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, rumors began to circulate challenging the official narrative that it was an unprovoked surprise attack. The cumulative evidence gathered over the last seventy years by scholars, journalists, and investigators vindicates those suspicious of treachery from the top; for it comprises a solid circumstantial case that Franklin D. Roosevelt and his top advisors deliberately provoked the attack and deliberately looked the other way before it came. What was the reason for their treachery? Roosevelt wanted to plunge the United States into the European war on the side of Great Britain but was unsuccessful in provoking Germany in the North Atlantic. So he decided that provoking a Japanese attack upon U.S. military bases in the Pacific would be the best way to achieve that objective. Since Japan was allied with Germany un...

Published in Sagar Sandesh English Maritime Weekly Tabloid on Dec 5, 2012 edition Source: http://www.sagarsandesh.com/epaper/ http://www.sagarsandesh.com/news/crusading-the-cause-of-cadets-dns/ While resentment against the continuation of Diploma in Nautical Science (DNS) programme among the more than 10,000 sea-time waiting cadets is growing day by day, conflicting signals, instead of positive, are emanating from Indian Maritime University (IMU) about the future of the course. According to the latest notification from the IMU, decision to conduct IMU Common Entrance Test (CET) for February 2013 batch is yet to be taken in consultation with DG Shipping. “The same will be notified (to the affiliated institutes) after the decision is taken,” read the notification. Normally, notification for IMU-CET February batch for the one-year DNS course leading to B.Sc. Nautical Science Programme on IMU campus and its affiliated institutes will be issued by November every year and ...