Merchant Shipping and other related activities under Government Control in India

The Ministry of Shipping (MOS), Govt. of India encompasses within its fold Shipping and Ports sectors which include Shipbuilding and Ship-repair, Major Ports, National Waterways, and Inland Water Transport.
 Ministry of Shipping (MOS) has been entrusted with the responsibility to formulate policies and programmes on these subjects and their implementation.

Major Ports Of India under MOS

[1] Chennai [3] Ennore [3] Kandla [4] Kochi  [5] Kolkata (including Haldia) [6] Marmugao [7] Mumbai (including Jawaharlal Nehru Port) [8] New Mangalore [9] Paradip [10] Tuticorin [11] Visakhapatanam [12] Port Blair.

Kolkata Port Trust (formerly Port Commissioners, Calcutta) is the oldest operating port in India, having originally been constructed by the British East India Company.  Kolkata Port is India's only Riverine Port with two dock systems - Kolkata Dock System at Kolkata with the oil wharves at Budge Budge and a Deep Water Dock system at Haldia Dock Complex.

Mumbai Port Trust (formerly, Bombay Port Trust) was established  in 1873. Ever since, it has been the Gateway to India, and was the contributing factor in the emergence of Mumbai as the commercial capital of India. Increasing growth of Port traffic, led to the establishment of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port in Navi Mumbai in 1992.

 The Port of Visakhapatnam (also called Vizag) is located in east central India on an embayment off the Bay of Bengal. The Port of Visakhapatnam's natural harbor is formed by two promontories that create the only protected harbour on the East Coast.

Public Sector Undertakings (PSU) under MOS
 

[1] Shipping Corporation of India. [2] Cochin Shipyard Limited. [3] Dredging Corporation of India. [4] Hooghly Dock and Ports Engineers Limited. [5] Ennore Ports Limited. [6] Central Inland Water Transport Corporation Limited [7] Sethusamudram Corporation Ltd.

The Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) is a company owned by the Govt. of India  based in Mumbai that operates and manages vessels that services both national and international lines. SCI was established on October 2, 1961 by the amalgamation of Eastern Shipping Corporation and Western Shipping Corporation. Two more shipping companies, Jayanti Shipping Company and Mogul Lines Limited were merged with SCI in 1973 and 1986 respectively.

Cochin Shipyard Limited, Kochi, was incorporated in 1972, with the first phase of facilities coming online in 1982. In the last three decades the company has emerged as a forerunner in the Indian shipbuilding industry. This yard has facilities to build vessels up to 1.1 Million tons and repair vessels up to 1.25 Million tons, the largest such facilities in India.

Hooghly Dock & Port Engineers Limited, Kolkata, is one of the oldest shipyards in India. It was established in 1819 in private sector and called as Hooghly Docking & Engineering Company Limited. Subsequently, Port Engineering Works, which was with M/s. Andrew Yule & Company, was merged with Hooghly Docking & Engineering Company Limited and the Hooghly Dock & Port Engineers Limited (HDPEL) was formed. The Company was nationalised in 1984.

Inland Water Transport on the rivers & some coastal routes was developed by the East India Company men about 180 years ago. The Joint Steamer Companies i.e. India General Steam Navigation Co. and Rivers Steam Navigation Co. were made a P.S.U. in 1967 as Central Inland Water Transport Company Limited (CIWTC). Presently, the main activities are transportation of cargo in the rivers in the Eastern India North-Eastern India and on the Indo-Bangladesh Protocol Routes.

Dredging Corporation of India helps to ensure the continuous availability of the desired depths in shipping channels of the Major and Minor Ports, Navy, Fishing harbours and other maritime organisations. The DCI Head Office of  is  located  at Visakhapatnam.

SUBORDINATE AND ATTACHED OFFICES: of MOS

[1] Directorate General of Shipping. [2] Lakshadweep Harbour Works. [3] Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships. [4] Minor Ports Survey Organisation.

 The Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships provides General Aids to Mariner Navigation along the Indian coast. The Headquarters of the Directorate is Noida.(U.P.) 

For administrative control of the entire coastline, the Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships has been divided into seven Districts having their regional headquarters at Jamanagar, Mumbai, Kochi, Chennai, Visakhapatnam , Kolkata and Port Blair. 

 Societies and Associations affiliated with MOS

[1] Indian Maritime University [2] Seafarers Welfare Fund Society, [3] Indian Ports Association.

Indian Ports Association being the nodal agency for all Indian major Ports, with its huge data banks undertakes monitoring of Shipping and Traffic related  activities of all Major Ports. Analysis of Ports Performance Indicators, Equipment Utilisation and other productivity parameters and also maintaining the physical and financial progress of various port development projects.

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Next Post; Warship building in India

Flags of Convenience

Merchant ships have used false flags as a tactic to escape enemy attacks since time immemorial. There are plenty of examples found from as early as the Roman era through the Middle Ages, till modern time. The modern practice of registering ships in foreign countries to gain economic advantage originated in the United States during World War I.
“Flags of Convenience” or Privilege denote registry of a merchant ship under a foreign flag. A "Flag of Convenience" ship is one that flies the flag of a country other than the country of ownership. Cheap registration fees, low taxes and freedom to employ cheap labour, and leniency in safety requirements are the motivating factors behind a shipowner's decision to 'flag out'.

Till 1960s ships registered in ‘Flags of Convenience’ countries used to fly the merchant flag of a ‘PANLIBHONCO’ (Panama - Liberia - Honduras – Costa Rica) country to enjoy nominal registration fees, liberal tax concession of investment, no compulsion to employ nationals of the flag country and many such handouts.

Panama extended the first "Flag of Convenience" and soon the practice of FOC ships grew in popularity. In order to control the monopoly of the Panamanian registry, in 1948, the United States helped Liberia create its "open registry". The Liberian registry  attracted American oil companies and Greek shipowners who sought to avoid high labour costs.

The Liberian ship registry--set up by U.S. shippers after World War II--is cheaper than nearly any other in the world, Liberia, founded by freed American slaves, has always enjoyed a close trading relationship with the U.S. Today Liberia’s merchant marine is one of the world's largest. The success of Liberia's registry encouraged the opening of other competing registries.

Nautilus International

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=547348&l=14efe62fd1&id=100000148971647

 As of 2009, Panama, Liberia and the Marshall Islands are the world’s three largest registries in terms of Dead Weight Tonnage (DWT). Other significant "Flags of Convenience" includes the Bahamas, Malta, Cyprus, Antigua, Bermuda, St. Vincent and Cayman Islands.

 The International Transport Workers' Federation's (ITF) Fair Practices Committee (a joint committee of ITF Seafarers' and Dockers' Unions), which runs the ITF campaign against FOCs maintains a list of 32 (thirty two)Registries it considers to be FOC registries.

The Marshall Islands Maritime Registry is highly acknowledged throughout the world, not only by the Yachting community, but by the entire maritime industry due to its easy registration processes.

On October 8, 2007, the Marshall Islands Postal Service issued a series of new stamps featuring yachts registered in the Marshall Islands. The stamps in this issue reflect colourful photographic images of the magnificent yachts to sail under the flag of the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

The Slogan of the Franking meter reads PATRONISE NATIONAL FLAG SHIP BY INDIAN SHIP. There is concern at the increasing use of Flags of Convenience to enable ship owners to escape obligations inherent in using the Flag of ship’s owners home country and thereby jeopardizing the safety, the environment and seafarers conditions.  
According to the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), presently, more than half of the world's ships are registered with "Flags of Convenience".

  Mansi Choksi of the 'Times of India' reports (August 14, 2010), "According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Developments (UNCTD)'s latest Review of Maritime Transport of 564 ships owned by Indian nationals, 69 ships (roughly 12%) had been registered in foreign states. Of the 69 Indian-owned ships registered in other countries, 25 were registered in Panama. "The popular "Flags of Convenience" with Indian ship owners are usually Panama, Liberia, Singapore and the Marshall Islands. Some countries even land-locked ones, such as Mongolia offer their Flags to pretty much anyone who pays a fee and the ships are technically under their jurisdiction of the country whose flag they fly".

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Madras Week - 2010, East Indiaman & Fort St. George

 Whole of this week Madras (Chennai) will be agog with "Madras Week". August 22nd. is considered as the 'Founding Day of Madras' in 1637. 
Since 2004, this day/week is being celebrated as "Madras Day" - with lot of  exhibitions, book releases, etc. on Madras.
We are the only group [Madras Heritage Lovers], bring out unique and special Postal Covers on Madras. This year's theme is  "PROSPERITY of TRADE and COMMERCE". 
The cover shows; the old Bank of Madras building (presently State Bank of India). Being a good trader, Pachaippa amassed wealth in trade with East India Company, finally leaving it to a Trust for philanthropic purposes. So, his stamp is selected and affixed on the cover. 
The cancellation shows "an old 'East India-man' in full sail" showing the means of  Sea Trade.

Back of the cover shows; an early Landing Ship, a Ship wreck, the first Pier, and the Bank of Madras.
(Contributed by D.H.Rao of Madras (Chennai) . Anybody interested to get the cover @ RS. 25 each may contact Mr. D.H.Rao, email; dhrao1939@yahoo.com

 

The Isle of Man stamp depicts "Fort St. George, Madras", an East Indiaman and the effigy of Ensign Mark Wilks.

 

In 1687, Elihu Yale, the Governor of Madras (after whom the Yale University in the USA has been named) hoisted the Union Jack for the first time on the flag-mast replacing that of the East India Company's Ensign. The 47.5 meter (156 feet) flag-mast is the oldest and tallest Flag-mast ever built in India. The original wooden mast was replaced by a steel mast of equal height in 1994.

 

Some earlier special covers issued on the occasions of celebration of "Madras Day"

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The Royal Indian Navy; Pigeon Mail Service

During the Second World War, in 1941 Vice-Admiral Sir Herbert Fitz-Herbert, Flag Officer Commanding, Royal Indian Navy established a ‘Pigeon Mail Service’ in India. Lieutenant Commander Boman Kaikashrov Shroff, a pigeon fancier of Bombay and Officer-in-Charge, Naval Carrier Pigeons, initiated the Mail Service from Lion Gate, Bombay. 

 The Royal Indian Navy’s First Pigeons Flight performed on 6th April 1941, by about 250 (two hundred fifty) Homing Pigeons in Bombay Presidency. They were flown from Kalyan to Bombay, a distance of about 30 miles. Each bird carried eight slips of ‘Messages’ from Sir Roger Lumley, G.C.I.E., T.D., Governor of Bombay to Vice-Admiral Fitz-Herbert, C.B., C.M.G., Flag Officer Commanding, RIN.

 

 

 The Flight was organised for charity and the amount realized from the sales of these 2000 “Flown Messages” enclosed in pre-cancelled envelopes were donated to “The Royal Indian Navy War Purpose Fund”. Each envelope for sale to the public was priced at Rs. 2/-

 

 The Indian Postal stamp commemorating the first ‘Pigeon Post’ organised by the "Royal Indian Navy" in 1941(issued on 3rd. November, 1989).

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Flags at Sea - Jack

“Jack” is the name given to the “Flag” flown on a small vertical spar (pole) at the stem or on the bowsprit of a warship.

E.M.C. Barraclough, the internationally renowned vexillologist writes ‘although at first ‘Jacks’ were flown from the mast-head of a ship, it soon became the practice to fly them from the ‘sprit-mast’ which was fixed to the bowsprit. It was often been thought that the “flag” is called a “Jack” because it flies from the ‘Jackstaff’, but actually the ‘staff’ is called a “Jackstaff” because the “Jack Flag” flies from it. Likewise, the British “Union Flag” is most often wrongly referred to as “Union Jack”

 

 

Most countries use the diminutive of their National flag as ‘Jack’

 

 Scandinavian countries State flags and Jacks are 'swallow-tailed' or 'split' at the fly.

 

 

 Some countries have/had a ‘historic’ or other special design ‘Flag’ for use as ‘Jack’.

The Great Star Flag 1837

An 1818 act established that the Great Star Flag include a star for each state and 13 stripes. Capt. Samuel C. Reid, a naval hero of the war of 1812, recommended arranging the stars into one 'large Star pattern', a common design in the 19th. century.

Greece has two Flags, one with the simple ‘Greek Cross’ on blue field used as ‘Jack’ and the other with the ‘Greek Cross at the canton and nine blue and white stripes’ used as ‘Ensign’

The U. S. Coast Guard Ensign and Jack

The badge has the motto ‘Semper Paratus’ (Always Prepared) and the date ‘1790’. The post card commemorates the 175 th. Anniversary of the U.S. Coast Guard.

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