Vasan to visit Japan

On the invitation of Mr. Akihiro Ohta, Minister of Land, Infrastructure Transport and Tourism, Government of Japan, a delegation led by Mr G.K. Vasan, Union Minister of Shipping will be visiting Japan from Nov 7 to 12.

The delegation consists of Mr Vishwapati Trivedi, Secretary, Shipping, Mr R. Srinivasa Naik, Director, Mr M.A. Bhaskarachar, CMD of Ennore Port Ltd. and other officials of Ministry of Shipping.

During his visit to Japan, Mr Vasan will have discussions with the Japanese Government for better coordination between two countries and to enhance the Japanese interests in utilizing the facilities of Indian Ports, more particularly Ennore and Chennai Ports.

The delegation would also be visiting the Port of Yokohama and Port of Nagoya to see the port operations and the latest technologies being utilized in these two Ports. 

During the visit, the Minister will also have discussions for obtaining JICA funding for Outer Harbour project of VOC Port, Thuthikoodi.

It may be noted that many Japanese automobile manufacturing companies including Toyota, Mitsubushi, Isuzu, Nissan and Toshiba are using Chennai Port for importing automobile components through containers for their factories located in Chennai.

Another Japanese Company M/s Metal One (Mitsubishi group) is importing steel coils used for automobile through Chennai Port in the break bulk form.  Around 240 Japanese companies have developed business in and around Chennai in the last decade.

These Japanese Companies have also evincing interest in using Ennore Port, located some 30 km from Chennai Port.

At present, Nissan Motors India and Toyota are the major Japanese Companies using the Ennore Port facilities for their export.  M/s Nissan Motors has exported about 3 lakhs cars from Ennore Port.  Toyota has so far exported 42,000 cars from the Port.

Government of Japan has shown interest in developing Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor as part of Peninsular Region Industrial Development (PRIDe).  Ennore Port has been identified as a main logistic hub in industrial corridor development.  JICA has already commenced the study.

Besides scheduled meetings with Japanese Government officials and business leaders during their visit, the delegation would also visit cities like Kyoto and Osaka.

According to official sources, the proposed visit will enhance the Indo-Japanese cooperation and give a fillip to better coordination and cooperation between the two countries in the shipping sector.  Expertise of Japanese in port operations, ship recycling and shipbuilding will be utilized by the Indian ports and shipyards, they added.

Save the sinking Indian shipping

Source: http://www.sagarsandesh.com/news/save-the-sinking-indian-shipping/

It was bureaucracy versus business at the India Shipping Summit 2013 held in Mumbai from Oct. 21 to 23 when both the entities traded barbs against each other on who is holding the Indian shipping sector back. A $2 trillion dollar economy that is fourth largest in the world with a long coastline of 7, 517 km dotted by 13 Major Ports and 176 minor ports ranks abysmally low at 16th position in merchant ship fleet.

A renewed vigour can only be infused into the sector if the bureaucracy amends itself to reality and put its  house in order to woo business, argues industry in opposition to the contention of babudom that berates the Indian shipping sector as whining school boy with his satchel who refuses to outgrow its mewling and puking state of infancy.

Besides the blame game, shipping companies, ports and terminal investors also took the opportunity to share their ideas and experiences to revive the growth of Indian maritime sector.

Cargo handling

Mr. Rajeev Sinha, Director, Adani Port & Special Economic Zone Ltd: While cargo handling in Major Ports is set to double approximately from 546 million tonne in 2013 to 1, 051 million tonne, the cargo handling during the same period for non-major port is estimated to grow two-and-a-half times from 388 MT to 982 MT. By 2020 there is going to be a change of scene between major and non-major ports with the latter overtaking the former in terms of cargo handling strongly driven by private sector and industrial growth.

Non-major private ports are scoring good on performance indicators like vessel Turn Around Time, pre-berthing delays, larger vessels and larger parcel sizes. Major Ports suffer from the manning scales that are old and union-based practices when compared to minor ports. Major Ports are operating in losses with poor return on assets. Foreign private companies have invested $2.4 billion to create 150 million tonne total capacity. Private investment in green field project is $4.7 billion and shift of cargo from Major Ports to minor ports happen by the sheer quality of service.

Public Private Participation (PPP) is not putting all the risk on the lap of the private investments. For their part, private players are doing their due diligence on the project and without gauging the return people bid for the project. PPP could be a success if the management in public ports is professionalized. Lateral entry talent should be allowed when private sector is wished to participate in the project with huge financial investment.

PPP projects 

Mr. Rajiv Aggarwal, CEO & MD, ESSAR Ports Ltd: The ban on iron ore has led to a loss of 100 mn tonne cargo and overall growth of cargo has been tepid at less than 3%. In the past 2 years it has grown from 884 MMT to 934 MMT. On the infrastructure development the projects are stuck due to statutory and market risks and most PPP projects are generating enough return on investment.

With the total port capacity of 1, 300 MMTPA the cargo utilisation is now at 934 MMTPA revealing a decline of utilisation from 80-85% to 70%. China in comparison has a port capacity of 3, 300 MTPA with the cargo utilisation of 2, 500 MMTPA and not to forget the size of Chinese economy that is 3.5 times bigger than India.

PPP, if formulated as a win-win proposition, could be a big money churner with a return possibility of 10 to 15% apart from overall development and other multiplier benefits. The Government shouldn’t restrict its responsibility by just providing water front and expecting the private partner in the PPP projects to take the entire risk. Taking cue from world models, the Government should introduce Dispute Resolution Mechanism (DRM) to review concession agreements. The concession agreements here are considered to be watertight with no revisit, but world over 55% of projects are referred to DRM. Encouraging port-based industries would open up cargo volumes.

Losing business

Dr. Jonathan Beard, Global Lead Port & Logistics, Vice President, ICF GHK: The competition between Major Ports and non-major ports should be driven by choice. The present hub feedering model between India and nearby Singapore and Sri Lanka is bound to have a significant impact on India’s import and export costs. There should be capex spend on building capacity for receiving mega vessels like draft, inland connectivity to gateway port. Major shipping lines demand more than 35 moves per crane having 230 to 250 moves per ship hour while berthing larger vessels.

LNG cargo

Mr. A. K. Balyan, MD & CEO, Petronet LNG: There is declining LNG demand in Europe due to increased pipeline flows of LNG from Atlanta base to Pacific basin, while there is increasing availability of volumes from US, Auz, Russia and Africa. New buyers are also from Singapore, Thailand and Mexico and we do see re-gasification in India and China. But there is global certainty and no clarity on Japan nuclear start up. Kochi offers unique opportunity in bunker coast in East-West trade route with regulation more and more on emission controlled areas. We need to focus pipeline infrastructure as currently we have 40, 000 km of pipeline network. LNG projects should be brought under the infrastructure ambit.

Role of coal

Capt. Sunil Thapar, Director, Carrier & Tanker Division, SCI: Once   staggered at the 11, 000 plus mark before the onslaught of recession, the Dry Bulk index is rising from the crash at 1, 800 points and industry watchers predict this rebound as ‘dead cat bounce’ revival. When world economy has grown less than 3% in 2010-11, dry bulk growth was up 7% (2012), but supply had outstripped demand by 5 to 6% pushing rates down and leaving the shippers only to meet opex and not capex.

For Dry Bulk the cheer is India’s massive need of coal to fire its power plants and Indian coal imports are expected to surpass the China’s during the XIIth Plan. Currently the coal import is projected to be around 137 million tonnes. There is going to be huge import consignments from US and Auz as Indonesia is facing some domestic issues.

Mr. Ravi Chopra, Director, Interocean Group: Power and steel consume major portion of the traded coal in the market with minor 3% consumption by the cement industry. Coal shipments are expected to jump from 140 million tonnes to 200 million tonnes in 2016 and reach 300 million tonnes by 2020. Shipments are going to increase from Handymax to capesize for economies of scale and from C & F to FoB for freight optimisation. Ship owners are likely to enter into long term charter to hedge against market uncertainties and for guaranteed supply of cargo at certain price point.

Mr. Jagmeet Makkar, Co-Head of Noble Chartering & Global Head of Shipping Assets, Noble Group: 

Slow steaming along with freight rate and charter rate coming down can create virtual shortage as vessels take extra time to complete the voyage. Of course it’s going to be savings in bunker if the charter remains low. The global commodity trade comprises iron ore, coking coal, fertilizer and food grains. In global iron ore trade Australia is set to increase its exports to 69 million tonne up 4% at 69 million tonnes, Brazil at 3 million tonnes, India down by 45%, China at 65%, Korea and Japan at 3% or 7 million tonne.

The overall Australian supply is quite large even the tonne mile. Only India and China cannot maintain the momentum and US could jump the bandwagon with energy price remaining low by kick-starting its infrastructure renewal process.

FDI policy

Capt. Anoop Sharma, CEO, Shipping Business, Essar Shipping: With US entertaining the thought on infrastructure renewal, there is going to be iron ore demand from China and India. Next, the bottlenecks in coal have to be eased out. The Government should extend the clearances and facilitate the Fuel Supply Agreement for the power plants. With power producers acquiring aggressively mines in Indonesia and US there is going to coal landings in all parcel sizes. With 100% FDI in the sector investors should take advantage of the policy.

Poor infra

Mr. Umesh Grover, CEO, INSA: Indian shipyards are disadvantaged by old methodology, no-block building making productivity extremely low, Capesize steel cost disadvantage, high finance cost, work culture and no township model of manufacturing with social infrastructure. India also doesn’t have the critical mass advantage over cost like China. Power plants, steel plants and heavy industries set up many years ago were based on integrated social infrastructure model where workers were provided with social amenities like hospitals, schools and colleges and recreation proximate to the plant site. Shipping yards should also be modelled on these lines for success.

Job generation

Mr. Ravi Mehrotra, CBE, Executive Chairman, Foresight Group: There is no other miracle other than stepping up manufacturing to generate jobs for the millions. We can follow the Chinese model for creating jobs. There is massive underemployment in Indian agricultural sector that contributes 25% of the country’s GDP having 57% of labour. China was similar to India in this scenario. But China grew its manufacturing sector to 29% of its GDP weaning away the unskilled and semi-skilled agricultural labourers to work in factories.

It just takes 4 months to train a welder that is how China became the low cost manufacturing hub of the world. Manufacturing sector share of India is woefully 8.3% of its GDP. India spends around 6% of its GDP on infrastructure in opposition to China that allocates 22% of the GDP.

Lost at sea

"One day, Europe will need young immigrants to reverse its demographic decline. The arguments will be reversed, the walls will tumble, and the seas will free up."

by Serge Halimi
Source: http://mondediplo.com/2013/11/01lampedusa

Those who decided to flee from oppressive regimes and go into exile 30 years ago were admired in the rich countries of the West and acclaimed in the press. The view was that refugees had “chosen freedom” — a museum in Berlin honours the memory of 136 people who died between 1961 and 1989 attempting to cross the Berlin Wall.
Hundreds of thousands of Syrians, Somalis and Eritreans who are now “choosing freedom” are not welcomed with the same enthusiasm. Last month in Lampedusa, the Italian island in the Mediterranean, a crane was needed to hoist the remains of almost 300 of them, drowned after a shipwreck, on to a warship. For these boat people, the sea was their Berlin Wall, this island their grave. They were granted Italian nationality posthumously.

Pic courtesy: Getty Images

Their deaths seem to have given some political figures pause for thought. On 15 October, former French interior minister Brice Hortefeux said the shipwreck called for an “immediate response: our countries’ social policies must be made less attractive” (RTL, 15 October 2013). He apparently assumed that extravagant generosity attracted refugees to Europe: “State medical care enables people who have entered the country illegally [to receive treatment free of charge] whereas French people may have to pay up to 50 euros ... The prospect of benefiting from an attractive social policy is a powerful incentive. We can no longer afford to provide that.” We do not know if Hortefeux believes that the 1.6 million Afghans who have sought refuge in Pakistan were lured there by its social services; or if 540,000 Syrians who sought asylum in Jordan escaped in order to enjoy the largesse of a kingdom where per capita income is seven times lower than in France.
Thirty years ago, the West used its prosperity and freedoms as an ideological weapon against the systems it opposed. Now some of its leaders are exploiting the distress of migrants to hasten the dismantling of social security. These manipulators of misfortune prefer to ignore the fact that the overwhelming majority of refugees worldwide are taken in by countries almost as poor as them.
When the EU is not insisting that these states, already close to collapse, “stop this unworthy business of unsafe boats” (Tweet by Cécilia Malmström, European Commissioner for Home Affairs, addressed to Libya and Tunisia, 11 October 2013.), it is urging them to become its buffer zone, to protect the EU from undesirables by tracking them down or holding them in camps. The most shameful part is that this cannot last. 

One day, Europe will need young immigrants to reverse its demographic decline. The arguments will be reversed, the walls will tumble, and the seas will free up.

New salary scale for port & dock workers

Source:http://www.sagarsandesh.com/news/new-salary-scale-for-port-dock-workers/

Bringing a happy end to the marathon wage negotiations between the Bipartite Wage Negotiation Committee (BWNC) comprising five major Federations of Port and Dock Workers’ Federation and the Indian Ports Association since July last year, both the parties on Oct. 25 signed the new wage settlement that would heave a sigh of relief for 50, 000-odd port and dock workers working in 12 Major Ports.
The deal was signed in New Delhi by the stakeholders (representatives of five federations affiliated to INTUC, HMS, CITU and AITUC) in the presence of Mr. B. K. Sanwariya, Chief Labour Commissioner (Central).
According to Shipping Ministry sources, the five-year wage settlement (from 1-1-2012 to 31-12-2016) would come into force with immediate effect.

The agreement will be implemented immediately and the arrears (from 1-1-2012 to till date) will be paid within two months from the date of settlement (Oct 25, 2013).
It may be noted here that the last meeting (10th meeting of the Bipartite Wage Negotiation Committee for all India port and dock workers, held in Madurai on July 2 and 3, failed as the Port Trust management offered only 9 % whereas the federations stuck to their demand of 20 %.
From the first meeting of the Bipartite Wage Negotiating Committee that was held at Vijay-Deep (Administrative Offices of the Mumbai Port Trust) on July 23 last year, there were several ups and downs in the negotiations and on a few occasions, there were even open warnings to the port managements to face the strike call.
However, the regular meetings between these stakeholders actually created conducive environment of late and it has finally helped them seal a decent accord with a win-win situation for both the parties on Oct. 25.

Explaining further about the deal to Sagar Sandesh, Mr.  R. Santhanam, General Secretary, Port & Dock Labour Union, one of the recognized trade unions in Chennai Port, said: “The period of agreement will be from 1-1-2012 to 31-12-2016. We hope that the port management would hand over the arrears to all the employees within the stipulated two months period.”

Since the new wage accord is going to benefit nearly 50, 000 port and dock workers, all the Major Ports are likely to shell out about Rs. 400 crores per annum.

Besides, another important issue of consolidation of pension for the existing 1.25 lakh port and dock pensioners has been referred to a sub-committee.

Basic pay will be fixed as follows

–Existing basic pay as on 31-12-2011 + 57.14 % (variable dearness allowance) VDA x 10.5 fitment (Basic Pay as on 31-12-2011 x 1.7364 will be same).

–Increment 3 %. HRA 15%, 20%, 30% as earlier slab. Port allowance 10 % more than the existing.
–Transport reimbursement Rs. 525 + DA .
–Children’s education allowance Rs.15, 000 per child not exceeding two children.
–Washing allowance Rs.155 and Rs. 200 as per the slab.
– Special washing allowance to fire and hospital section will be locally settled.
–Design allowance as Rs. 500
– In the case of option and MACP fixation benefit will be Rs. 230, Rs. 345 and Rs. 460 to the beneficiaries according to the new scale 1 to 4, 5 to 7 and 8 to 10 respectively. Family planning allowance 3%.
– Child care leave for ladies will be two year.

Scale of Pay as follows :

Existing                                Revised

7,800  –  15,800                 13,500  -  27400

8,100  -  18,200                 14,100  -  31,600

8,300  -  18,600                 14,400  -  32,300

8,600  -  19,900                 14,900  –  34,600

9,000  -  21,200                 15,600  –  36,800

9,400  -  22,000                 16,300  –  38,200

10,200  -  25,700                 17,700  -  44,600

11,000  -  29,400                 19,100  –  51,100

12,100  -  30,800                 21,100  -  53,500

13,600  -  32,400                 23,600  -  56,300

Arrears will be given on or before 31-12-2013.

Is Shipping Ministry trying to destroy Maritime Education in India?

Source:http://www.sagarsandesh.com/news/is-shipping-ministry-trying-to-destroy-maritime-education-in-india/

The recent announcement by Union Minister for Shipping G. K. Vasan to lift the ban on new approvals of pre-sea maritime training courses is really a bolt from the blue. Moreover, it is learnt from reliable sources that the Ministry is contemplating on according approval to various engineering colleges to conduct 4-year Marine Engineering programme.

This announcement and contemplation are coming at a juncture when the existing Maritime Training Institutions are finding it extremely difficult to make sea-time arrangements for their students. 
This sea-time training is a requirement for successful completion of the degree courses and leading to first level of competency examinations.
In view of these difficulties faced by the Maritime Training Institutions the Shipping Ministry through its important wing the Directorate General of Shipping had imposed various bans to restrict the flooding of training seafarers in the market. 

The following are some of the directives issued by the DGS for effectively curbing this menace of increased unemployment of trained seafarers:
1.Excerpts from Training Circular No.6 of 2011 dated 20.06.2011

“Subject: Restricting further increase in the intake for the DNS course- reg.

A recent review of the authorized intake for the one-year pre-sea Diploma in Nautical Science course (DNS), leading to the 3-year B.Sc. (Nautical Science) Degree, undertaken in the Directorate General of Shipping, has revealed that the intake capacity created for the DNS course significantly exceeds availability of the structured shipboard training slots. The structured shipboard Training is essential for appearing in the 2nd Mate examination and the consequential employment of the trainees as 2nd Mates.

A situation has therefore arisen where the candidates who have completed 1-year Diploma in Nautical Science (DNS) are staring at the prospect of unemployment over prolonged periods for want of the Structured Shipboard Training.  This is particularly so for a substantial number of candidates who have completed the course in 2010 and reported so even for candidates from prior batches.

In the light of the foregoing, it is decided to freeze the approved intake for the DNS course to the present sanctioned strength until the backlog for Structured Shipboard Training (SST) is reduced to a marginal level. A ban on new approvals/ enhancement of an intake for the DNS course is as such imposed, with an immediate effect. Therefore, until further orders, it is hereby intimated to all concerned that no new applications for new institutes/courses/additional intake of students for DNS course shall be entertained by the Directorate General.”

Subsequently one year later a Training Circular No.4 of 2012 dated June 18, 2012 was issued which states thus:

 “After the opening of the maritime training to private sector in 1996-97, there has been mammoth growth in the number of Maritime Training Institutes conducting pre-sea courses, and as on date more than 85 institutes are approved for conducting various pre-sea training courses of both the discipline, i.e. Nautical and Engineering.
A recent review of the approved intake of pre-sea courses against the training berths availability undertaken by the Directorate has revealed that the intake capacity created for pre-sea courses significantly exceeds the training berths available. The large and rapidly growing backlog of trainee officers, who have completed their pre-sea courses but are unable to get the training berths on board ships – a prerequisite for their Certificates of Competency in the entry grade – are a matter of serious concern.
In view of the above, the Director General of Shipping hereby imposes a ban on increase in capacity by restricting new approvals/ increase in intake in all pre-sea courses leading to entry level competency either at the Second Mate level or at the level of MEO Class IV, whether Foreign Going (FG) or Near Coastal Voyage (NCV). 

Provided, however, an exemption could be made where a State Government wishes to run such a course.”

A survey conducted by the Directorate revealed that there were more than 3, 700 nautical cadets awaiting sea-time berths. An analysis revealed that this flooding was due to the introduction of DNS course, not only by Indian Maritime University but also by various private maritime training institutes. This unnecessarily warranted the above said ban, by issuing various circulars. This sudden unemployment was attributed to global financial recession leading all shipping companies to lay off their ships. They had also cancelled the orders placed for building new ships. 
The present scenario still remains the same.

The shipping industry is still trying to limp back to normalcy. When such is the situation, it is really surprising to learn that the Ministry is planning to open up the floodgates for all the engineering colleges across the country to start Marine Engineering course.

Marine Engineering as such is a specialized profession which demands a lot of dedication, sacrifice and selflessness. Going back in the history of seafaring in India, maritime training was restricted to TSS Dufferin and TS Rajendra as well as Directorate of Maritime Education Training, which were all Government institutions. 
Considering the increased requirement of seafarers globally the Government decided to privatize maritime training in the early 1990s. Naturally when the market got flooded with unemployed engineers and navigating officers, it  imposed the ban.
When the market is still flooded with unemployed seafarers what is the necessity for not only lifting the ban on the existing institutes but also giving approvals for new engineering colleges to start Marine Engineering training. 

This move, obviously, is to satisfy the ever greedy politicians, who all have started various engineering colleges to fill their coffers. Citing the Government’s aspiration to subsequently increase the seafarers to 9% of the world share can only be a distant dream in the prevailing scenario.

Presently the maximum unemployed seafarers are belonging to Nautical Science.By permitting the engineering colleges to conduct Marine Engineering course we will be contributing to unemployed marine engineers also to be roaming about in the streets looking for sea-time.

The DGS is opening up the floodgates once. Then suddenly it is imposing a ban and then re-opening the floodgates again as per the whims and fancies of the unruly politicians, thereby turning the Directorate into the Thuglak Raj. Please save the seafaring community.

The Directorate should have a clear policy with respect to maritime training. The Minister’s aspiration to increase the Indian participation in the global seafaring to 9% can be achieved only when the world economic scenario improves and thereby improving the shipping industry.

The present scenario of the engineering colleges is also pathetic with the mushrooming of engineering colleges. There are neither quality faculty nor quality students. The colleges are unable to produce good engineering graduates. As per the employment agencies’ remarks, only 10% of the engineering graduates passing out from the various engineering colleges are employable. Rest of them have just completed their degree.

Quite a few colleges (engineering as well as arts and science) have recently started MBA programme, as this programme does not come under the purview of AICTE as per the recent court order.  Unfortunately most of them have to close down this programme as there are no takers. Since the control is lacking, the quality is not assured. This is the situation of the peer education sector.
The Shipping Minister will have to consider these aspects before taking a decision. Otherwise he will have his hands full and may find it difficult to face the electorate during the election which is round the corner. The Minister will also have to bear the curses of the trained yet unemployed aspiring seafarers.

Arrested Seaman Guard crew lodged in Chennai jail, enquiry on

"While many seafarers think it was an unwarranted action by the Taiwanese authorities primarily to satisfy their local fishermen and the investigations also cleared Tosa later, the Seaman Guard episode should not be seen as an “Official-harassment” among the international seafaring community."

Source:http://www.sagarsandesh.com/news/arrested-foreign-crew-lodged-in-chennai-jail/

While the US-based firm AdvanFort, which owns the anti-piracy escort ship Seaman Guard Ohio that has been detained off the coast of Tamil Nadu, termed the action as “inappropriate,” the local police filed a case against the crew and arrested all of them.

According to police sources, a case was registered in Tharuvaikulam Marine PS on Oct. 13 against the crew and guard on board in the vessel Seaman Guard Ohio on the complaint of Assistant Commandant, Indian Coast Guard, Tuticorin, for offences under Arms Act 1959, Essential Commodities Act 1955 and Motor Spirit and High Speed Diesel prevention of malpractices in supply and distribution order 1990.

Investigation by the ‘Q’ Branch CID revealed that the said vessel was found in the territorial waters of India and was in possession of a huge quantity of arms and ammunition, without valid authorisation of documents.

Pic courtesy: www.advanfort.com

During the course of investigation, the ‘Q’ Branch CID seized 35 arms and about 5,680 ammunition from the vessel and also arrested eight crew and 25 guards on the morning of Oct. 18, leaving two crew for upkeep and maintenance of the vessel, till the company makes alternative arrangements for the maintenance of the vessel.

Since then, there were dramatic developments in USA, where the firm is located, and there are frantic efforts by the international community to pinpoint the Indian Government action as ill-advised and against international maritime conventions.

As a security measure, all the arrested crew-members are now shifted to a prison located in the vicinity of the state capital Chennai.

In a strongly worded statement, AdvanFort, while terming the action as “inappropriate,” added that the firm, which relentlessly work for safeguard of commercial ship from piracy attacks in oceans, is working diplomatically and through the judicial system to prove the innocence of 35 detained crew-members and get them released.

“Our vessel Seaman Guard OHIO has been detained in Tuticorin and 35 of our crew and guards are being held. We believe the entire issue is inappropriate, because we were asked to come into Indian territorial waters by the Indian Coast Guard, while we were outside the Indian territorial waters where we were operating,” Mr. William H Watson, President of AdvanFort, told a news agency in India.

One of the members arrested by the police include Capt. Dudnik Valentyn, a master who himself was a victim of Somali pirates. On New Year’s Day in 2011, Somali pirates boarded Capt. Dudnik’s then vessel, the MV Bilda and he and his crew spent 11 months in captivity before being freed on payment of a $2.6 million ransom of the $8 million originally demanded.

Capt. Valentyn is now master of the Seaman Guard Ohio, a vessel used by U.S.-based maritime security firm AdvanFort International as an accommodation platform for counter-piracy guards between transits on client commercial vessels transiting the High Risk Area in the Indian Ocean.

Though the company is yet to produce any valid documents for carrying such huge quantity of weapons onboard, seafarers’ community in India as well as from other countries expressed apprehensions that it should not become thaw in the Indo-US relationship.

An Indian seafarer also recalled how an Indian Captain of MV Tosa was taken to task without valid reasons in Taiwan a few years ago.

In April 2009, MV Tosa, a Panama registered cargo vessel with an international crew, which had unloaded in a South Korean port, was moving to Singapore.

One early morning during her journey, MV Tosa allegedly collided with a Taiwanese fishing trawler, killing two onboard. Capt. Glen Aroza from Mangalore was in charge, with duty officer from Bangladesh Mohammud Karim and seaman Eduardo Mallorca from the Philippines. It was not yet daylight when the alleged collision took place and most people on the MV Tosa were asleep.

The Taiwanese police surrounded the cargo ship within an hour, boarded it and escorted the vessel to Port Hua Lien. Aroza, Karim and Mallorca were immediately arrested and taken to jail, where they remained for the next 17 months while investigations went on as if MV Tosha had actually collided with the Taiwanese fishing boat.

After thorough investigations under water and hull inspection undertaken by the Taiwan and Singapore authorities they concluded that Tosa was not involved in any kind of collision. Finally, Aroza was allowed to return to India in October 2010.

While many seafarers think it was an unwarranted action by the Taiwanese authorities primarily to satisfy their local fishermen and the investigations also cleared Tosa later, the Seaman Guard episode should not be seen as an “Official-harassment” among the international seafaring community.

While Indian authorities are still investigating whether the vessel wantonly entered Indian territorial waters with any motive or lured into by gullible fuel-selling trawlers, only the final outcome of the enquiry would reveal.

Canada makes its third MLC detention

Source:ITF

Pic courtesy: http://www.fleetmon.com

The Panamanian-flagged bulk carrier Kouyou was detained on Oct 24 in the Port of Quebec, Canada, after maritime labour officials determined that crew were owed more than USD51,000 in backpay.

It is the third detention in Canada of a vessel under the new international Maritime Labour Convention (MLC 2006), which came into force worldwide in August, a media statement from ITF has said.

Problems aboard the ship were discovered by Mr Gerard Bradbury, an inspector with the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) and Unifor union.

Mr Gerard explained: "Twenty Burmese and Vietnamese crew, including the Canadian Captain James Maung are not being paid or treated properly, and in particular had been shorted on the home-allotment portion of their pay that provides for families left at home while seafarers are abroad at work.”

The most alarming situation aboard involved crew who had paid a total of USD6,600 in fees to obtain their jobs, Bradbury said.

Recruitment or placement fees paid to manning agents are illegal under international labour conventions. In some cases, crew were also receiving less than half the wage owed them under their labour agreement, he stated. Wage calculations are ongoing, but are expected to top USD51,000 US. Four crew have asked to be repatriated after receiving wages owed them.

Transport Canada was notified and has stepped in to detain the vessel until all wages have been taken care of and the crew have been sent home.

Mr Bradbury said that contact has been made with the Japanese owners Doun Kisen KK, the Japanese company that owns the vessel, and that talks are under way.

The Kouyou is the third foreign vessel detained in Canada for serious violations of international labour standards and violations of a collective bargaining agreement.

Mr Peter Lahay ITF Canada coordinator said: “We are extremely pleased that Canada has seriously given life to the MLC. On our request Transport Canada inspectors are enforcing a convention that has been agreed by the world’s shipping community and member states of the ILO. The ILO has concluded that the world’s seafarers are among the most isolated and marginalised workers in the world and are in need to special protection. That is what we are doing.”

He went on to say that Canadians should be proud that theirs was the first country anywhere in the world to detain a vessel under the provisions of the MLC. In all three cases so far, crew members from the vessels Hydra Warrior, Lia M, and now Kouyou were being badly cheated.

"The world’s seafarers can rest assured that if they have problems aboard their ships Canada's ITF inspectors will do everything in their power to correct the problems," Mr Peter Lahay added.