Centre gives nod to subsidy scheme worth Rs 1,624 crore for Indian shipping companies

Tribune News Service
New Delhi, July 14

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The government on Wednesday decided and announced a scheme of subsidy to the tune of Rs. Rs 1,624 crore over five years for the Indian merchant shipping companies to make them favourite in global tenders floated by ministries and Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) for import of their bulk cargo.

A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said Information & Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur.

Later in an official statement, the government said, “The registration shall be done online within 72 hours like the world’s best ships registries and this will make it easy and attractive to register ships in India and thereby aid in boosting the Indian tonnage”.

It further said in addition to this, “It is intended to provide 30 days to any in-flagging vessel to replace the crew on board with Indian crew”.

In order to address the cost disadvantage suffered by Indian flagships, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her Union Budget speech for 2021-22, had announced a scheme providing Rs 1,624 crore over five years to promote flagging of merchant ships in India by providing subsidy support to Indian companies in global tenders floated by ministries and CPSEs.

In the statement the government said, steps are also being taken to rationalise the manning requirements on the ships by aligning them with international standards.

It also pointed out that despite having a 7,500 km long coastline, a significant national export-import trade that is steadily growing on an annual basis, “a policy of 100 percent FDI in shipping since 1997 and Indian shipping industry and India’s national fleet” has been proportionately small in comparison to their global counterparts.