Marine Lines December, 2018

Let's turn the tides

Volume:I Issue:V

December 2018

Price: 150

LINES

Raise a toast to east coast India’s Transhipment Hub Dream Anchors AtLINES Krishnapatnam Port MARINE • 2018 DECEMBER

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DECEMBER 2018 • MARINE LINES

MARINELINES Editor-In-Chief Girish Joshi Managing Editor Jaimini Rao Design & Layout Pravin Kacha Head Office Marine Lines 3. 2nd Floor, Plot No. 283 Madhuban Tower, 12/B Gandhidham, Kutch, 370201, Gujarat, India email: marinelines2018@gmail.com +91 99095 55416 Mumbai Office 14, Ground Floor, Himalaya House, 79 Palton Road Fort, Mumbai 400001 Contact : +91 98200 03562

From the Editor's Deck Dear Readers, Greetings.

M

arine Lines travelled down south last month to Chennai to understand and report the dynamics of marine trade on the East Coast.

This edition of MARINE LINES talks on the experiences shared by the maritime fraternity there. It is our endeavour to keep the adrenaline flowing on the ongoing activities in maritime trade and sector.

Navayuga Group is fast positioning it’s Krishnapatnam Port & Container Terminal as India’s transhipment hub on the east coast.

To share news / views etc: editor@marinelines.net To share press releases : news@marinelines.net For advertisement : advt@marinelines.net For subscription : subscription@marinelines.net For general enquiry: info@marinelines.net Published by Girish Joshi and printed by Print Vision Pvt. Ltd. on behalf of Girish Joshi. Printed at Print Vision House, Lane Opp to Ashwamegh Elegance 2, Ambawadi Market, Ahmedabad 380 006, Gujarat. Published from # 3. 2nd Floor, Plot No. 283 Madhuban Tower, 12/B Gandhidham, Kutch - 370201, Gujarat, India. Editor: Girish Joshi.

We aim to bring you the realities of the trade along with stories of entrepreneurship and development shaping the maritime trade across the vast Indian coastline.

In our approach to create awareness amongst the seafarers and maritime trade enthusiasts, we always try to report first hand account.

Every new beginning has a huge potential of ancillary opportunities and we attempt to bring those for you.

In this issue, let us understand the dynamics propelling the cruise tourism business on east coast and how young Indian entrepreneurs are keen on converting this stretch into a long thriving transhipment hub.

Girish Joshi Editor-In-Chief

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Inside 06

Cover Story:

Navayuga Group’s Krishnapatnam Port & Container Terminal is emerging as India’s transhipment hub on the east coast

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Q & A:

Vinita Venkatesh Director, Navayuga Container Terminal

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Chennai Cruise Terminal:

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Chennai readies to welcome international tourists

Expert Speak:

GST Impact On Import Of Goods & Services

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Travelogue: The Lord’s Trustee in Diu

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Merchant Navy As A Career:

Life at sea, would you want to join?

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Coastal Cuisines: Smack Your Lips & Savour These

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Cover Story

navayuga group in new a era in s

By Marine Lines Team

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he tale of the King in Karnataka - Krishnadeva Raya using Krishnapatnam port to import Turkish horses is one inspiring story for all working at this port container terminal.

Strategic location of the port in Andhra Pradesh geographically is working in favor of port management. Functionally convenient logistics point which services the inbound and outbound cargo to and from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Partial East 6

Maharashtra, helps the port company to address markets across four states.

Krishnapatnam port has achieved a remarkable growth of 80% in throughput in 2017-18 and handled 0.5 million TEUs Krishnapatnam is at south of Andhra Pradesh and towards north of Tamil

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Nadu.

Apart from southern states preferring Krishnapatnam, now it is even the cotton exporters of Eastern Maharashtra who prefer to ship their cargo from Krishnapatnam, rather than shipping it from Nhava Sheva Port on West Coast.

Krishnapatnam Port promoted by the Hyderabad-based C.V.R. Group is a privately built and owned all weather, deep water port on the east coast of India, located in the Nellore District of Andhra Pradesh. The port with a transit storage area of 6800 acres has the country’s largest waterfront area of 161 sq. km, and a depth

p ushers shipping of 20.5 metres. katesh, Director, Navayuga ContainKrishnapatnam Port Company er Terminal, Krishnapatnam Port.

Ltd. (KPCL) which was formed by An innovative market approach is winning the mandate from the Govt. immediately evident from the NCT of Andhra Pradesh on BOST (Build– commercial that captures attention Operate-Share-Transfer) concession on the Tata Sky DTH ( Direct to basis for 50 years is being built in Home) services with several celebrithree phases and currently the sec- ties from the sports fraternity endorsond phase is underway. ing the brand. Customer response to Krishnapatnam services the hin- NCT’s services has been remarkable terland of Andhra Pradesh. Telanga- with the terminal achieving growth na, Karnataka and north Tamil Nadu. of 80% in throughput in 2017-18 to It is also well located to serve east handle 0.5 million TEUs bound exim cargo from central InIn keeping with the exim trade’s dian cargo generation areas such as increasing clamour for Indian carthe cotton exporters of western Ma- goes to be handled at Indian ports harashtra, according to Vinita Ven- instead of being transhipped at the

neighbouring ports of Colombo, Singapore, Port Kelang etc, Krishnapatnam Port has been offering shipping lines efficient container transhipment services from 2017, aided by Indian flag vessels which provided a network of feeder vessels between Krishnapatnam and Kolkata / Haldia and other ports on the east coast of India.

Maersk Line, was the fore-runner in commencing transhipment of its containers from China / Korea / Far East at Krishnapatnam for final destination Kolkata and Haldia. Other liners followed suit and soon Hyundai Merchant Marine, Zim / Goldstar, SCI and many NVOCCs began transhipment operations at Krishnapatnam.

The recent policy to waive cabotage restrictions has added a fillip to the transhipment volume handled by NCT, Krishnapatnam Port as foreign flag feeders are now also able to provide coastal transhipment services.

All the transhipment feeders together offer 5 feeder services per week at NCT, Krishnapatnam to connect with Kolkata, Haldia, Vizag, Paradeep, Kakinada, Tuticorin on the east coast as well as Cochin, Mangalore, Mundra, Kandla, Hazira and Nhava Sheva on the west coast. Due to this, transhipment volume at the terminal has grown steadily from 13000 TEUs average transhipment volume per month in the first quarter of current financial year to 17, 200 TEUs by second quarter, and now in the third quarter to an average of 19,800 TEUs per month.

In response to the trade need for transhipment facilities, Krishnapatnam port extended its quay length at the container terminal by 150 m to provide an exclusive coastal berth where coastal vessels can berth without window timings and use the ship’s gear to load / discharge in addition to the handling by the shore -based MHC. Going forward, the container terminal infrastructure will be developed to a total extended quay length of 900m with 3 new SPP quay cranes,

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able for the numerous mainline services and coastal feeder operators looking to hub transhipment operations at NCT , Krishnapatnam.

Buoyed by uncongested road and rail connectivity and strong cargo growth prospects by way of the construction of the new capital of AP, Amravathi as well as an automotive manufacturing surge that will result from the new Kia Motor plant at Ananthapur in AP, NCT looks poised to grow in importance as a hub port on the east coast of India.

Versatility of product offerings, a truly customer-centric service approach and excellence in terminal operations are the magnetic combination that brings customers to NCT. the enhanced infrastructure, the termi- ficient capacity for growth is already NCT’s clear focus is to bring value nal capacity will increase from the current available, the decision to invest addition- to the customers supply chain through 1.2m TEU to a capacity of 2 m TEU. al CAPEX ahead of demand is with the time and cost efficiencies which makes Although the current volume at NCT, objective of ensuring that sufficient quay for enduring customer relationships, Krishnapatnam is at 0.6m TEU and suf- length and handling infrastructure is avail- she further asserts.

Q&A

“We are competing only with ourselves”

Vinita Venkatesh Director,Navayuga Container Terminal

thus bringing the total number of from across the world, we have hired key-factor for Maharashtra cotton exporters, who prefer to ship their QCs to 8. The expansion will be sports professionals for same. cargo via road or rail to Krishnapacomplete by the 4th quarter of 2018Q. Golf? That sounds interesting. tnam and from there towards East 19. With A. Golf is a game where person Asia. In terms of trans-shipment hub, Q.You have aggressively started competes himself breaking his own the port management is aggressivebranding campaign. Comments A. To sell Krishnapatnam Port as old benchmark, which is very much ly promoting Krishnapatnam as one trans-shipment destination, company similar to the port sector business. “cost-effective” destination for those has adopted a very novel approach. Golf, according to us, is one such enterprises and business who wish to The port has emerged as one entity sports activity where the person com- sail their cargo from east to west and which displayed its commercials ads petes with self, trying to break his/ vice-versa.

Q. As compared to Singapore, on Tata Sky DTH (Direct to Home) her own record and shipping indusservices, with several celebrities try also works on similar thumb-rule Port Kelong or Colombo, is Krishfrom sports fraternity endorsing the and so we are trying to attract glob- napatnam quite cost-effective? brand – Krishnapatnam Port. al shipping leaders via golf game to A. I may not be able to give speIn fact, we conduct golf tourna- market Krishnapatnam port. cific freight component in terms of ments to associate with global shipcost-effectivity, as the freights are ping industry leaders and in one such Q.What are the cost advantages largely driven by demand-supply elements in shipping trade, but say if recently held golfing event conduct- to the user? ed by us, we had 175 participants A. Logistics cost advantage is one liner is paying x amount for tranship8

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ment at any-other port, Krishapatnam is at far less value than x.

Q. Four ports are beehived in vicinity of 200 km range on the south east coast route, Chennai, Ennore, Kattupalli and Krishnapatnam.

How does Krishnapatnam see itself surviving amidst the fierce competition? Also, how does the port management positions Krishnapatnam port against the aggression of private port players like Adani at Kattapali Port and well-established long-term repute as enjoyed by Chennai Port?

A. We are looking at advantage Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, with new capital city of Amrawati – of Andhra Pradesh.

The port management envisages advantage to Krishnapatnam, being a multi-product port handling containers, bulk-cargo, liquid cargo etc, Krishnapatnam is clear-cut advantage.

Secondly, Krishnapatnam Port is expanding its berthing space from 600 meters to 900 meters envisaging future cargo momentum, the additional capacity is scheduled to be operational in 2nd quarter of calendar year 2019.

The additional berthing space will help add 0.8 million tons of cargo handling capacity to existing 1.2 million tones per annum, taking total cargo handling capacity to 2 million tones per annum.

Presently, Krishnapatnam handles 0.5 million tons of cargo every year, which is less than 50% of the installed capacity. Land is also no constraint for the company as Krishnapatnam Port has 6,800 acres of land presently operational, which is seven times the size of Chennai Port. We have back-up land of 12,000 acres to service any future expansion as well growing demand for warehousing etc.

Water depth available at Krishnapatnam Port is 18.5 meters and can be made dredged upto 22 meters to let the huge capacity vessels dock at the port.

All in all combined cargo handling

capacity across four beehived ports Pradesh – Amrawati.

Secondly the rail-road connectivity in vicinity of 200 kilometers – Chennai, Ennore, Kattupalli, Krishnapat- will allow Krishnapatnam to service the nam stands at 90 million tons and is hub of Karnataka – Bangalore and cermuch under-utilized as all four ports tain central destinations like Hyderabad handle less cargo than the installed and Guntoor in Andhra Pradesh.

KIA Motors is expected to go operacargo handling capacity.

“This in itself is a kind of advan- tional in 2nd half of calendar year 2019.

Krishnapatnam Port will also start sertage for us to market Krishnpatanam aggressively to the world players in vicing automobile sector requirements port-shipping-logistics space”, Vini- once KIA Motors starts operations and the company will gradually scale-up the operta admits. ations in similar direction, depending on Q. How are you looking at servicing the demand.

Dedicated four-lane road connectthe north-east?

A. Krishnapatnam Port also takes ing national highway to the port is being advantage of it strategic location for planned to be made as six-lane, in coming servicing transshipment cargo mainly years. Another two-lane road connecting to north-bound ports on east-coast ie to the national highway is being planned - Haldia and Kolkata, which largely ca- to be made as four-lane highway.

The company’s dedicated rail connecters to the north-east hinterland.

Recent changes in cabotage rules tivity with privately owned rail-company compelled the operators to opt for feed- is one advantageous arm for Krisher services and that has largely helped to napatnam Port.

Especially client and customer service centric fast decision making is working in favor of the company, which otherwise requires several layer of approvals in traditional government or corporate sector port model. Company has got two more concessions to develop, Machalipatanam port in Andhra Pradesh and Astharanga port in neighbouring state of Odisha.

Both projects are not time-bound, as matter of land-acquisition for port is subject of respective state governments and post-acquisition the acquired land will be given to the company for port development service the feeder routes and liners from purpose.

Krishnapatnam to sail their trans-shipQ. Any plans to list the company ment cargo, especially to Kolkata and on stock exchanges?

Haldia.

A. The promoters of the port Q. What sort of benefit is Krishna- company – Navayuga Engineers patnam envisaging from newly formed are not keen to list the company on state of Andhra Pradesh and Telanga- the stock exchanges because they na, along with the thrust the present believe that there would be several day government aims at infrastructure hassles in terms of corporate governance, boardroom approvals and sector?

A. It is a win-win situation for Krish- several other regulatory framework napatnam Port as the company has start- adherence, while trying to address ed handling lot of project cargo for the the customer or client centric renewly announced capital city of Andhra quirements.

“Krishnapatnam Port is promoting itself as a cost-effective destination for those enterprises who wish to sail their cargo from east to west and vice-versa”

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expert speak

GST IMPACT ON IMPORT OF GOODS & SERVICES

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he Article 269A of the Constitution mandates that the supply of goods or services or both in the course of import into the territory of India shall be deemed to be supply in the course of inter-state trade or commerce. Thus, import of goods or services is treated as deemed inter-state supplies and is subject to Integrated tax (IGST).

While the levy of the IGST on import of goods would be levied under the Customs Act, 1962 read with the Custom Tariff Act, 1975, IGST on import of services would be leviable under the IGST Act. Import of Goods In case of goods as the same are identifiable the Customs Duty and IGST is collected at the time of filing of Bill of Entry. The import of goods has been defined in Section 2(10) of the IGST Act, 2017 as - “import of goods” with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, means bringing goods into India from a place outside India.

Manner of Levy of IGST on Import of goods Any goods which are imported into India, in addition to the Basic Customs Duty, is liable to integrated tax at such rate as is leviable under the IGST Act. Further, the value of the goods for the purpose of levying Integrated tax shall be assessable value plus Customs Duty levied under the Act, and any other duty chargeable on the said goods under any law for the time being in force as an addition to, and in the same manner as, a duty of Customs.In addition, GST compensation cess, may also be leviable on certain luxury and de-merit goods under the Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Cess 10

Monish Bhalla, Author & GST Expert

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he unique aspect of import of services is that the import of services can be considered as supply based on whether there is consideration or not and whether the service is supplied in the course or furtherance of business. The same has been explained in the table below

Nature of Service Consideration Business Test Import of services Necessarily Not required (Section 7(1)(b) Required Import of services by Not required Necessarily a taxable person from Required a related person or from a distinct person (Schedule -1) Act, 2017.

Import of Services In case of services, the importer of services will have to pay tax on reverse charge basis. However, in respect of import of online information and database access or retrieval services (OI-

DAR) by unregistered, non-taxable recipients, the supplier located outside India shall be responsible for payment of taxes (IGST). Either the supplier will have to take registration or will have to appoint a person in India for payment of taxes. As per Section 2(11) of the IGST Act 2017 the term “import of services” means the supply of any service, where (i) the supplier of service is located outside India; (ii) the recipient of service is located in India; and (iii) the place of supply of service

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is in India; In case of Transitional Transactions As per the provisions contained in Section 21 of the IGST Act, 2017, all import of services made on or after the appointed day i.e. 1st July, 2017 will be liable to integrated tax regardless of whether the transactions for such import of services had been initiated before the appointed day However, if the tax on such import of services had been paid in full under the existing law, no tax shall be payable on such import under the IGST Act. In case the tax on such import of services had been paid in part under the existing law, the balance amount of tax shall be payable on such import under the IGST Act, 2017. For instance, suppose a supply of service for Rs. One crore was initiated prior to the introduction of GST, a payment of Rs. 20 lacs has already been made to the supplier and service tax has also been paid on the same, the integrated tax shall have to be paid on the balance Rs. 80 lacs.

Monish Bhalla can be reached on taxolegal@gmail.com

future perfect

Gujarat, TN to emerge as major maritime clusters for India

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draft report prepared under the Sagarmala Programme of the Ministry of Shipping has concluded that maritime clusters will be in focus for economic development along India’s coastline.

The report on port-led-industrial development of the coastal economic clusters identifies two major maritime clusters in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat similar to the global success stories in Japan and South Korea.

Globally the shipbuilding market is dominated by China, Korea and Japan which cumulatively account for 90 per cent of the world’s shipbuilding capacity.

In spite of the downturn with excess capacities; this demand is expected to go up to 150 mn DWT by 2025 and 300 mn DWT by 2035 with the growth in global exports.

According to the report, India currently accounts for only 0.45 per cent of the global shipbuilding market and could target 3–4 mn DWT of the global shipbuilding capacity by 2025. With the recent policies and initiatives by the government of India, the unfavorable cost differential faced by the Indian shipyards is expected to reduce.

Subsequently, opportunity in defence sector, growth in coastal shipping and replacement of existing vessel fleet is expected to drive growth of the shipbuilding industry in India.

The report also states that India can target to achieve a 0.2 per cent share of maritime services in overall GDP by 2025.

Given an expected GDP of USD 6 trillion in India by 2025, and a services share of 50 per cent, the maritime services industry is expected to be worth around USD 6 billion by 2025. Even the Rs 5,000 crore worth ancillaries market for maritime cluster can prove to be a huge opportunity for the Indian economy with engineering, fabrication and machining offering the greatest potential by 2025.

With the given potential, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu can emerge as major maritime clusters for India with scope of developing various components of the maritime cluster like ship building and ancillary services, maritime services, promoting maritime tourism and marine products.

In Gujarat, the potential marine cluster could leverage the existing ecosystem and steel supplies from Hazira. It can also utilize existing shipyards at Pipavav, Dahej & Hazira ports and ship breaking yard at Alang. The cluster will consist of existing shipyards, ancillary cluster at Bhavnagar with retail and leisure components, services cluster in Ahmedabad / Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT) and existing fish landing centres as identified by the Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB).

The maritime cluster in Tamil Nadu is proposed to be developed near Chennai due to enabling conditions like existing shipyards, major ports, steel cluster, automotive and engineering industry, universities and colleges. A 100-acre land parcel owned by Kamrajar Port Limited has been identified for cluster development in Tamil Nadu. This site is also in proximity to Kattupalli Port and shipyard.

Given the manufacturing strength, size

of the ports with high traffic and synergies with other steel ancillaries, both the identified locations for maritime clusters can provide positive synergistic effect by attracting business for the maritime industry and improving the economics for the cluster participants.

Placing India as an ideal destination for developing marine tourism, the GOI report also suggests developing aquariums, water parks, marine museums, cruise tourism and water sports. The fishing industry would provide employment and contribute to the overall maritime economy of the State, says the report.

The report also captures overall opportunity of port-led industrial development for the country through 14 CEZs proposed along the maritime states and industrial clusters under Sagarmala. The competitive location of these CEZs will help reduce logistics costs, thus, enabling Indian trade to be more competitive globally. These proposed CEZs with proximity to ports have been envisioned to tap synergies from the industrial corridors to provide a thrust to manufacturing and industrialization under the ‘Make in India’ initiative of the Government of India.

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chennai cruise terminal

Nalvaravu! Chennai readies to welcome international tourists

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ith the kind of thrust Indian government has given to attract cruise tourism in India and make Mumbai a hub of Cruise Tourism, existing cruise terminal at Chennai Port now gears to welcome the second international cruise on Christmas Eve. Chennai Port has already been servicing the Cruise vessel service to Andaman-Nicobar Islands as operated by Andaman-Nicobar port authorities and every week a vessel sails from Chennai port to anchor at Andaman-Nicobar island capital Port Blair after 60 hours (almost two-and-a-half days).

But today, as soon as you enter the Chennai Cruise Terminal at Chennai Port the complex apart from its central gate domestic lounge now has entry for foreign tourists from left side on upwards direction leading to a huge international lounge and exit on right side.

Air-conditioned complex with im12

migration counters decked one after another with a huge convention hall facilitating sitting arrangements for foreign tourists on opposite side and automatic escalators to enter and exit the venue, with a VIP lounge and a cafeteria, are some of the key-attractions of the international lounge for the tourists who will anchor at Chennai port on Christmas Eve. Chennai Port’s cruise terminal on East Coast of the nation, by default now becomes the gateway port for international cruise vessels sailing on Indian shores, especially from East towards West.

The new additions at Chennai Cruise Terminal are being undertaken vide the Assistance to Central Agencies for Tourism Infrastructure, where the estimated cost of the set-up came to 24.01 crore rupees, of which 17.24 crore rupees was sanctioned by Ministry of Tourism, whereas balance amount is to be borne by Chennai Port

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Trust.

The construction project of the site was awarded to Engineering Project (India) Ltd for scope of work including 2 passenger lifts, 4 automatic escalators, electrification, closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras, public address system, baggage scanners, fire fighting system.

There are 10 cabins for the immigration and the counters have been provided at the first floor of the Cruise Terminal to start e-visa facilities at Chennai Port Trust.

Infrastructure to facilitate the e-visa issuance is also made available at the immigration counters with requisite connectivity and information-technology equipments in place.

To facilitate quicker immigration and customs clearance for cruise passengers, an IT-enabled RFID based Port Clearance System for simplified and uniform customs & immigration procedures are implemented at Chennai Port.

The immigration counters at Chennai Port Cruise Terminal can service 30 passengers for e-visa applications in an hour, 40 passengers for sticker visa applications in an hour and can hand over e-landing cards in 10 seconds to a passenger.

Facilitate the tourist arrivals, Cruise Facilitation at Chennai Port has also formed a Port Level Facilitation Committee (PLFC) which is constituted as per the instructions from Ministry of Tourism comprising of Cruise operators, port officials, representatives of department of immigration, customs, Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Port Health, Plant Quarantine, Local Police, State & Central Departments.

“Chennai Port’s cruise terminal on East Coast of the nation, by default now becomes the gateway port for international cruise vessels sailing on Indian shores, especially from East towards West” Pre-arrival facilitation meetings are generally conducted two days prior to the arrival of the cruise vessels, to discuss the manpower and other logical issues.

The Last PLFC meeting was convened on 26.03.2018 since the cruise vessel m.v. VIKING SUN arrived, anchored and docked at Chennai Port Cruise Terminal on 01.04.2018.

Provision of water supply to the passengers will comprise vide two RO plants available at terminal and the cafeteria facility is also available at mezzanine floor without kitchen facility, where pre-prepared food of good standard certified by FSSAI can be arranged by tour-operators on obtaining prior approval as per the Chennai Port Trust procedures.

The complex entry has a mandatory installation of radiological detection equipment (RDE) to detect any radioactive substances, if being carried by any passengers in any form and every passengers after de-boarding from cruise vessel has to compulsorily pass through the same in-

P Raveendran, Chairman, Chennai Port Trust

stallation prior to entering the cruise terminal complex.

Cruise terminal wharf will be barricaded along path way with necessary parking facilities for tour coaches and any unauthorized access will be restricted in that area.

Chennai Port Cruise Terminal anticipates LE LAPEROUSE vessel to dock on 25.12.2018 followed by QUEEN MARY vessel to dock the port on 17.03.2019 and the port envisages 10 international cruise vessels in next fiscal year.

Tourists de-boarding from international cruise can explore Santhome Church, Kapaleshwar Temple of Lord Shiva, Mahabalipuram, Kancheepuram and Puducherry and re-connect on the cruise.

All the instructions related to levies and regulatory requirements to dock the vessel at Chennai Port Trust’s Cruise Terminal are uploaded on the Chennai Port Trust’s website www.chennaiport.gov.in and is updated on regular basis from time-totime.

Main features of the Chennai Port Cruise Terminal: Berth Anytime All season berthing facility Water Depth : 11 meters 24x7 Navigational Facilities Concessional Composite Charge for port call at $0.35 /GRT (Gross Registered Tonnage) State of the Art Cruise Terminal Heart of Chennai Strategic location of Cruise Terminal is in the heart of the city Well connected by road, rail and air Chennai International Airport (MAA) is 21 kilometers Chennai Central Railway Station (MAS) is 4 kilometers Good Auto / Taxi / Bus Connectivity Spacious & Comfortable Cruise Terminal with very lavish space of 2,880 square meters can accommodate 1,000 passengers.

Four escalators and Heat Ventilation Air-conditioning systems provide a hassle free experience 10 immigration counters for faster clearance of passengers 10 more counters planned State of the Art Facility with highend security system such as Baggage Scanners, Handheld Metal Detectors & constant CCTV monitoring ensures top notch security Fire-fighting systems with Hydrants, smoke detectors and fire extinguishers provides a safe experience to the passengers.

Cruise Terminal Services comprises of duty free shop for souvenir shopping Cafeteria for refreshments Roof Top 250kW Solar Power Plant provides renewable energy The Chennai Port Cruise Terminal is LIVING THE SYNERGY comprising of well co-ordinated efforts between Port Administration, steamer agents, cruise liners, customs, central industrial security force (CISF), immigration, port health department, local police, state tourism, tour operators and ground logistics & transportation.

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news in brief

Big boost for container train operators: To get 25 % discount in haulage rate

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n an important business decision the er business both in export, import and which has realised the need to diverMinistry of Railways has decided to domestic. By reduction of rate by 25%, sify and expand its freight basket. The give a discount of 25% on extant haul- Railways expect to get more traffic from objective of the decision, said railway age rate per Twenty Feet Equivalent Unit ports. It will help to load more commod- officials, is to capture traffic of new (TEU) on transport of empty containers ity at economical rate which will result commodities, which, hitherto, have as well empty flat container wagons to in low price in the market giving benefit been moving from road or other modes of transport. Container transportation facilitate movement of containers by rail to common man. towards ports, thereby leading to higher Also, smooth movement of rakes is one such high priority segment that loading by rail from ports. The move is which will result in less detention time Railways has focused on in its bid for expected to enhance efficient handling and products will reach destination in expansion of freight basket. Containeriof traffic at ports and attract larger share time. Presently 18 private CTOs and sation of goods offers an excellent transCONCOR are operating this container portation solution which is efficient and of container traffic to rail. cost effective for the economy as well as The move is also to meet the demand service.

Expansion of freight basket has been helps Railway in attracting non-convenof container train operators (CTOs) and is expected to give boost to contain- a priority agenda for Indian Railway, tional or non-bulk traffic to rail.

Major ports clock 4.83% growth during April-November

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he major ports in India recorded a growth of 4.83% and together handled 461.21Million Tonnes (MT) of cargo during the period April to November as against 439.96 MT during the corresponding period of previous year.

For the period from April- November, nine ports of Kolkata (including Haldia), Paradip, Visakhapatnam, Kamarajar, Chennai, Cochin, New Mangalore, JNPT and Deendayal have registered positive growth in traffic.

The highest growth in cargo traffic was registered by Kamarajar Port 14

(20.15%), followed by Cochin (11.73%), Paradip (9.73%), Kolkata (including Haldia] (8.52%) and Deendayal ( 7.37%). Kamarajar Port growth was mainly due to increase in traffic of container (19.8%), other liquids (16.42%), Thermal & Steam Coal (10.71%) and POL (9.24%).

During the period April to November, Gujarat’s Deendayal Port handled the highest volume of traffic i.e. 77.33 Million tonnes (16.77% share), followed by Paradip with 71.30 MT (15.46% share), JNPT with 46.40 MT (10.06% share), Visakhapatnam with 43.03 MT (9.33% share) and Mumbai with 40.32 MT (8.74%). Together, these ports handled around 60.36% of traffic at major ports.

The Commodity-wise percentage share of POL was maximum i.e. 33.40%, followed by Container (20.71%), Thermal & Steam Coal (15.09%), Other Misc.

Cargo (10.64%), Coking & Other Coal (8.13%), Iron Ore & Pellets (5.65%), Other Liquid (4.25%), Finished Fertilizer (1.18%) and Fertilizer Raw Materials (FRM) (0.95%).

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Cloud-based ‘PCS 1x’ for ease of doing business

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he Indian Ports Association (IPA), under the guidance of Ministry of Shipping launched the Port Community System ‘PCS1x’. The url www.indianpcs.gov.in was launched by IPA chairman Sanjay Bhatia on December 11.

‘PCS 1x’ is a cloud based new generation technology, with user-friendly interface.

This system seamlessly integrates eight new stakeholders besides the 19 existing stakeholders from the maritime trade on a single platform. The platform offers value added services such as notification engine, workflow, mobile application, track and trace, better user interface, better security features, improved inclusion by offering dashboard for those with no IT capability.

A unique feature of ‘PCS1x’ is that it can latch on to third party software which provides services to the maritime industry thereby enabling the stakeholders to access wide network of services. The system enables single sign on facility to provide one stop interface to all the functionalities across all stakeholders. Another major feature is the deployment of state of the art payment aggregator .solution which removes dependency on bank specific payment eco system.

Contact person: Rahul Nair 80002 00008

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15

travelogue

The Lord’s Trustee in Diu

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By Rajeev Khanna

t was a February evening when having witnessed the beautiful sunset near the war memorial I walked back to this small bar on Jalandhar Beach in Diu. On the counter sat an old frail man with two women and the three chattered incessantly about small little things. I wanted to get high and hence ordered a Feni which I gulped pretty quickly for my normal drinking pace.

Once I had been hit by the alcohol, I sauntered over to the threesome and told Mansukh and his two wives that I was a client who had visited his bar and restaurant almost two decades back. This set the ball rolling with the old man retorting, “Those were the good old heady days. Life is still wonderful. My daughters are married and sons have migrated to Europe. I have shut down the restaurant, given the guest house on lease and run the bar to pass the twilight of my life with these two dames,” he said.

Just as I walked out, memory took me back several years when I had first visit16

ed Jay Shankar Guest House, Bar and pomfret. He only took money for the beer Restaurant recommended by local bu- that I had guzzled. The logic given by him reaucracy and the ‘firangs’ whom I had was, “The food is cooked at my home and met as I moved around sizzled trying to is given by Lord Shiva while the alcohol make up for the days being wasted in dry comes after paying to the government for Gujarat without a decent drink. The place the bar license.”

The story of his life as he told me that evening continues to rebound even after so many years. Mansukh used to be a small time vegetable vendor who mainly sold potatoes at the local vegetable market in the pristine island of Diu. A leader of the vegetable vendors, he was living a quiet contended life with his two wives and six children in a small house overlooking the Jalandhar Beach, an out of the world location for a travel enthusiast. Life comprised potato sales, afternoon siestas and an evening devoted to his favourite deity had been boisterous and the middle aged Lord Shiva.

But enhancing his income remained a lively Mansukh had spared a few minutes from the busy routine to interact with me. concern which was eventually addressed The meeting had ended with him refus- by an acquaintance who told him, “You ing to charge anything for the sumptuous have a house at a prominent location. Diu meal that I had of mind blowing tuna and is full of travelers. Why don’t you start a

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small eatery? “ From the next day Mansukh kept a huge ice box containing soft drinks for sale along with small packets of biscuits and wafers. The tourists shuffling between the Diu Fort, Jalandhar and Nagoa beaches on bicycles usually halted at his small shack.

It was a July afternoon when a white American or European tourist on a bicycle halted and said, “Can I have some Pepsi and food?” Now, Mansukh’s knowledge of English comprised bare minimum vocabulary and all he could speak of the Queen’s language was Yes, No and Thank You. Since he only understood the term Pepsi, he promptly said yes and handed over a bottle to the visitor. After a while, the visitor again asked, “I wanted some food and Pepsi.” Mansukh again said yes and handed over another bottle. This irked the visitor who peeped inside the house to see whether anything was being cooked. All he saw was Mansukh’s family sprawled on the floor.

The annoyed visitor handed him the money, scowled at him and probably abused him. This left Mansukh in tears as he tried to understand what had gone

wrong and where.

Sitting close by was another of his customers having her soft drink. She was a French native named Stephanie who was pursuing a course in Hindi in Paris and was observing what was going on. She walked up to Mansukh and asked him, “Didn’t you understand what he wanted?”

Mansukh told her his part of the story.

“It was Stephanie who persuaded me to start a small eating joint. She taught me the bland cuisine that the Europeans liked.

From thereon our enterprise took off. For the next few months she would market my outlet among the foreign tourists. We followed a rule. My wives cooked and my children served. There was no extra hand to help run the joint that slowly became a restaurant,” he had related.

She also helped him set up a guest house that was a rage among the foreign backpackers. The rooms were neat, came cheap and there was the cuisine that they wanted. In addition was a stock pile of books and magazines in several languages which many of them left back.

“Then at one point she asked me to marry her. I refused saying that I could

not go in for a third matrimony and more kids,” he said with a twinkle in his eyes.

So Stephanie left after a few more months but before she departed she got an Israeli friend of her to keep helping Mansukh.

His Jay Shankar Guest House was soon granted a bar license and it became Diu’s sought after place.

But throughout his walk to prosperity Mansukh never failed to thank his Lord.

Neither did he give up his vocation of selling potatoes. Perhaps this was the drive that had led him to walk into the office of the local revenue department one fine day and transfer his entire property in the name of Lord Shiva.

“I am convinced that all this belong to the Lord. I am just his trustee managing the things. Who would have thought that I would get so much in terms of money, popularity and love? It’s the Lords work,” he had said while sending me off that September evening 17 years ago.

How much he was adored was visible from the visitor book that he had maintained at that time. The comments from his clients all over the globe were amazing.

They were full of wit, fun and spoke of the loveliness of life. I wanted to know whether Stephanie maintained contact with him after all these years. “Yes she does call off and on,” he said with eyes that still sparkle at her name. “Where are your visitors’ books? I want to re-read them,” I said.

“They are lying dumped somewhere. I do not have the energy left in me to even sort out the books,” he said with remorse.

A friend recently told me that he has taken to writing the name of his Lord hundreds of times on a piece of paper every day. The clock of his life has clicked away.

He continues to run the small bar with minimal clientele. Old timers like me who have witnessed his hay days do go to him once in a while to see the Lord’s trustee at work.

This piece was penned during my last visit to Diu around three years back. I hope Mansukh and his old dames are doing well. I crave for a visit to him very soon.

You can write to Rajeev at rajeevsolan@gmail.com

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17

MERCHANT NAVY AS A CAREER

M

erchant Navy as a pro- big boss of the ship and has overall comfession is something not mand of the crew and officers. many Indians are aware Now I won’t go into the details of of, inspite of the fact that how to appear for the entrance examinaIndia has one of the highest number of tions for each of these ranks on the ship, seafarers in the world working right now. there are enough advertisements in print For those who are aware of this pro- media and social media. I will tell you fession, there are a lot more misconcep- what advertisements don’t , about the retions than actual awareness about the profession. Not everyone working in the merchant navy works on a passenger ship and life isn’t as white is as shown in movies and TV shows. Now, having been a sailor myself for the major part of my adult life, I put before you the actual life of a seafarer. It is an unbiased view of what kind of life it is. Read on till the end and decide if you would like the Merchant Navy as a career option.

Hierarchy onboard a ship There are 3 departments on board a ship. There are the deck officers and deck crew, led by the Captain, who look after the navigation of the ship and the cargo loading/ unloading. Then there are the Engineers and Engine crew, headed by ality of life at sea. the Chief Engineer, who are responsible The Good You start earning pretty early in life. for smooth operation of all the machineries. The 3rddepartment are the catering Speaking for myself, I was earning a destaff, who are responsible for ensuring cent amount of money before I turned 19, the ship staff is well fed. Captain is the where almost all my other friends were

Financial security is a big plus for a merchant mariner. As you climb higher up the ranks, the salary is much more than what others earn on the shore

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still in college and discussing assignments.

One of the biggest plus points of joining life at sea is that you become independent quite quickly. There is only so much anyone will do for you anywhere, least of all the people who you barely know at all. So there are a fair few things you learn to do on you own, not out of choice but out of compulsion, because Mom and Dad are not there to hold your hand. You are on your own.

There are Indian as well as foreign companies who employ seafarers. If you are in a foreign company, you will start earning in dollars and spend in rupees. Having a decent amount of money in hand is never a bad thing, best part is you won’t have to go around asking friends and family for handouts which is sometimes the case for collegians if they are not financially sound.

You will have to travel a lot, many a times to foreign countries, mostly on your own. With no knowledge of the local language, dialect and people, it is really exciting to travel to unknown places.

Of course at your destination, someone will be there to receive you and help you through the actual process in the particular country for joining a ship, so you

don’t have to worry about that.

You get to travel to foreign countries for free. Ships travel far and wide, to all corners of the globe. Once the ship arrives in port, it is usually permitted for the ship staff to leave the ship and visit the local town or the areas surrounding the port. Some countries may require a ship staff to have a visa for travel, but most countries will allow you to travel on a temporary shore pass. If you were an ordinary Indian, you would have to spend a fair amount of money to travel to places like South America or Western Europe. If you are a seafarer, you get off your ship and get into a taxi, as simple as that. You will get to enjoy the sights during the day as well as the night life of the country without having to spend too much on travelling.

There are ships which have completely Indian staff and other companies which employ multi-cultural crew. So you get to interact with people of different countries and you will come in contact with various cultures. Even when you visit a certain country on the ship, you have the chance to explore the area, its people and its culture. Having a multi-cultural crew on the ship also increases the number of festivals you can celebrate on the ship. You get an

understanding of how people go on living their lives in different parts of the world.

If you have an Indian cook, well and good. But if you have a foreign cook, who barely knows how to cook chapatti or dal, you are in for a culinary experience. It’s all part of the life at Sea. You can enjoy different types of cuisines and see what you like other than Indian food. Ofcourse, on any ship with Indian staff, Sunday is always Biryani day. So if you happen to visit a ship with Indian staff on a Sunday, you will definitely get Biryani. Don’t know how or when this practice started, but as a sailor I am sure glad it did. Of course, you will not always get 5 star dining experience, there will always be some cooks who either don’t know to cook or just don’t want to cook, so you may have to survive on bread butter and Maggi for a few months.

Financial security is a big plus for a merchant mariner. As you climb higher up the ranks onboard a ship, the salary increases and compared to what others may get paid at shore, it is much higher. Ofcourse the risks are higher too, but nobody would mind earning 7 lakhs a month regardless of the type of work you are doing.

You have to be smart though and invest the money wisely. If not, you may end up

wasting your money in ill-advised places.

There was a time until few years back, when alcohol was available onboard in the form of hard drinks as well as beer.

But off late, all big companies have become dry, meaning no alcohol onboard.

There used to be grand parties during birthday celebrations and for big festivals with booze flowing around like a river, but that is a thing of the past. It’s all about following the regulations now.

You will get to see stunning sunrises and sunsets everyday. People spend money and travel hundreds of miles to view such things, you just need to look outside your cabins. Add to that, the amazing marine life you sometimes get to see, others don’t see it even after spending money.

The Bad Now that you have read and understood the good part of the merchant seaman life, its time to show the other side of the coin too.

Loneliness is a big part of the life of a seafarer. You will have to spend months upon months away from your family.

The shortest contract of a sailor is 3-4 months and the longest may be upto 11 months. Imagine living away from your family and loved ones for so much time. The senior officers are allowed to carry their families on board for some amount of time, so it is slightly better for them. But for the junior officers, there are no such luxuries provided. You will miss all the major festivals and events at home. No more birthday parties or such celebrations. If there is an unfortunate event in your family, due to the nature of your work, you may not be able to reach home on time to attend your family. You can enjoy whatever you can only when you are at home during your holidays, which may be from 2-4 months at a time.

Capt Shehwaz Riyaz Marine Superintendent, Celestial Meridian Shipping, E-mail: shehwazriyaz@outlook.com (Views Expressed Are Personal)

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19

COASTAL CUISINES

SMACK YOUR LIPS & SAVOUR THESE

ing. Goan sausages made from pork and vinegar or tamarind to lend a tang to spicy ingredients with pao is a popular the curries. Ambotik and caldinho are f you are visiting Mormugao Port, street food. The Catholics of Goa make some popular seafood curries. Crisp do not miss on trying Goan food masalas like Richedo, and use much fried prawns called kismur or crisp fried – restaurants like Anant Ashram at vinegarm dry mango rind, tamarind or fish are a textural addition to balance the Vasco are located not very far from kokam for a tangy taste. The Hindu ma- curry. Brahmins are usually vegetarian the port. A Portuguese colony from the jority of Goa uses kokum or tamarind, except for some of the Saraswat groups 1500s to 1961, Goa’s plantations grow and the curries of Hindu Goans like the that eat fish and other seafood. Hincrops introduced from other Portuguese Saraswat Brahmins often have a yel- du Goan cuisine has a good repertoire colonies like chillies, cashew nut, tapio- lowish tinge because of profuse use of of vegetarian dishes using peas, lentils, banana flower, bamboo shoot, jackfruit, ca, corn, sweet potato, tomato, potatoes, colocassia leaves and drumstick in curpineapple, custard apple and sapota. The ries. Meat Xacuti is a popular Goan dish, Portuguese colonial influences from and for vegetarians a mixed vegetable Portugal, Mozambique and other Afristew called Khatkhatem, bhaji or shaak, can colonies, Macau and Brazil, gave usal, tondak (beans or white peas combirth to dishes like pork vindaloo, chickbined with cashews), coconut based en cafreal, prawns balcao, pork sorpotel, gravy dishes called rass, “undri” (a dish assado do porco, and various soups and made out of rice flour, jaggery, and costews. Vinegar is widely used in Porconut), curries called hoomans, moontuguese influenced dishes, sometimes gachogathi (curried green gram), batata replacing wines in original Portuguese Goan seafood song (potatoes cooked with tamarind, dishes as the Goan climate was not suitable for wine grapes, and toddy is also Asafoetida. Curry leaves and black mus- onions, garlic, chili powder and turmerpart of the cuisine. Another strong Portu- tard seeds too is added to some Hindu ic), and coconut based dishes like kairus guese influence in Goa is the tradition of Goan dishes. Fish and other seafood cur- and sukke are popular. Pickles and papmaking breads, biscuits and cakes. Pao ries are common in many homes using pads are had as accompaniments with is a European style bread that is oven fresh ground coconut, chillies, turmeric, most meals. The Mungcho Daal made baked and home delivered each morn- cumin and coriander, and either kokam, with moong, jaggery, coconut and green

I

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By Anil Mulchandani

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chillies is had when fasting.

Bebinca is a signature Goan sweet made from egg batter, coconut, jaggery and ghee.

for a meal served on a banana leaf. eryday Tamil Brahmin vegetarian food Bhatkal is a small port town on can be enjoyed in simple no frills eaterthe Arabian Sea north of Udupi that is ies called `mess’ or in some restaurants. known for its Navayath food that blends Tiffin is the term for snacky meals. The Islamic and Konkani elements. At North signature dishes here are the steamed MANGALORE Canara ports, you can get dishes of north rice cakes called Idli, pancakes called The cuisines of Karnataka’s coast- Karnataka that shares legacies of Karna- Dosa, Vada, Pongal, Paniyaram, Upma, al districts, namely Dakshina Kan- taka and Maharashtra.

Kozhukkattai (dumplings with various nada,Udupi district and Uttara Kannada fillings), Idiyappam (rice noodles made have similarities to those of Goa and out of steamed rice cakes), the dosa like Maharashtra’s Konkan coast. The major Adai, keeraivada, and kasihalwa made port city of Mangalore is known for its from pumpkin and jaggery. fish and other seafood dishes. MangaFor non-vegetarians, fish curries with lorean fish curry, called Meen Saaru, gets rice are widely available in Chennai. its distinctive red colour from the mild Restaurants serving Chettinadcuisines chillies. Another common preparation is offer a large range of non-vegetarian Pulimunchi made with tamarind. These dishes. are eaten with rice flatbreads like the There is a huge variety of rice dishGhol Fish in red Malwani masala akki roti, tissue-soft neerdosa or boiled es from lemon rice and tamarind rice to rice. Vegetarian dishes are made using biryanis that can be enjoyed in Chennai. kadala (chickpea), vegetables, dals, ca- KOCHI Dal is also used to make many dishshew nuts, peanuts, jackfruit and other The major port city of Cochin or es from seasonings and side dishes to local produce. Coconut, chillies and Kochi comprises a number of peninsu- mains. spices are used for most Mangalorean las and islands connected by ferries or curries. KoriGassi is a chicken dish with bridges. With such an abundance of wa- THOOTHUKUDI crisp rice pancake. The Goan and Portu- ter, it is an obvious place to enjoy rice, Formerly called Tuticorin, Thooguese influence is apparent in dishes like fish and coconuts. The typical meal of thukudi’s cuisine reflects its heritage of dukramaas, pork bafat and sorpotel, and the Malyali speaking people compris- trade links with different parts of the confectionery like coconut macaroons. es fish, seafood or meat dishes, two or world. A local speciality is the macathree vegetables, a curd based dish like roons, said to have been introduced by pacchadi, rice, crunchy items, chutneys the Portuguese. Many fish, meat and and pickles. Among vegetarian dishes, vegetable dishes are fashioned here with thoran made using beans, gourds, ba- local masalas. nana flowers and jackfruit seeds, and avail with mixed vegetables in a coco- VISAKHAPATNAM nut paste, are signatures. In Cochin you The Andhra coast is a fertile land with can also look for Syrian Christian dishes the deltas of the Godavari and the Krishlike erachiularthiyatu which is fried beef na rivers. While the Telugu food here is with coconut, mustard seeds, vinegar similar to that of much of Andhra, there MANGALOREAN BREAKFAST AT THE GATEWAY and spices, meenmoilee which is a fish are some distinctive elements in the UtHOTEL OLD PORT ROAD stew with coconut milk, and various tarandhra region that includes the great port of Vizag. The Bay of Bengal yields Fish curry and rice is a staple com- stews had with appam.

North of Kochi as you head for rich fish catches and these are cooked in bination along the Karnataka coast, and you will often get it with a crisp fried fish Kozhikode, Thalasseri and Kannur you tamarind flavoured curries called pulusu. to balance the texture. If you are visiting can try the Moplah food of the Malabari Fried fish is marinated in red chillies and ports of Udupi district, do not miss a veg- Muslims which includes rich gravy dish- spices to make podichela. Some of the etarian meal at Mitra Samaj – the goli- es eaten with pathiri or Malabari Parrota. famous seafood shacks are located near Puttu, steamed layered, cylindrical Rushikonda beach. bajje, a steamed semolina cake called Classic Andhra dishes like the kadubu ole, coconut holige and dosa are cake, is a Kerala breakfast classic. passarattu which is a moong dal dosa some of the signature dishes. You could and Andhra thalis can also be enjoyed also get dishes made using local produce CHENNAI The capital of Tamil Nadu and one of in Vizag. like coconut, pumpkin, gourd, yam, okra, spinach, cucumber, jackfruit, amla, ba- the largest ports along the Bay of Bennana, chillies and pineapple. Rich halwa gal, Chennai or Madras is home to many Anil Mulchandani is a s can also be enjoyed. You could join the cuisines including specialties of the freelance writer pilgrims at the Krishna temple complex Tamil and Telugu speaking people. Ev-

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Year-End Review

shipping ministry ends 2018 on many highs

T

he year 2018 has been a significant one for the Ministry of Shipping.

Bolstered by progressive policy interventions like amendment of Model Concession Agreement, revision of tariff guidelines and the various steps taken towards facilitating Ease of Doing Business, the major ports kept up their impressive performance of the past four years in terms of capacity addition and improvement of efficiency parameters.

The Sagarmala Programme saw the completion of 89 projects, while 443 projects worth Rs. 4.32 lakh crore are under various stages of implementation and development.

The year was especially remarkable for developments in the inland water transport sector. Cruise tourism was another area with important developments like the inauguration of a modernized international cruise terminal at Chennai Port and the launch of Mumbai-Goa cruise service, as was the skill development sector with the setting up of Centre of Excellence in Maritime & Shipbuilding (CEMS) at Vizag and Mumbai, National Technology Centre for Ports, Waterways and Coasts (NTCPWC), at IIT Madras in Chennai and the decision to set up Multiskill Development Centers (MSDC) at all major ports under Sagarmala.

Policy Initiatives The Model Concession Agreement has been amended with a view to obviate the problems being faced in execution of PPP Projects on account of certain provisions of the present MCA, in order to enhance confidence of investors and make the investments in the Port Sector attractive.

The tariff guidelines were revised to provide flexibility to port operators to align the tariff closer to market tariff subject to achievement of certain performance standards.

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100% FDI is being allowed in PPP Projects in the port sector.

A new Major Ports Authorities Bill to replace existing Major Port Trusts Act 1963 to provide greater autonomy and modernization of institutional structure is under consideration and has been introduced in the Lok Sabha on 16.12.2016.

This is awaiting consideration and passing by the Lok Sabha.

Revised guidelines have been issued to all the Major Ports for moving away from the practice of parking their surplus funds solely in the Public Sector Banks and investing their pension /provident/gratuity fund and surplus funds in accordance with guidelines of Ministry of Labour and Employment and Department of Public Enterprises, consistent with the provisions of Major Port Trusts Act, 1963.

Ease of Doing Business Towards facilitating ‘Ease of Doing Business, Ministry of Shipping had identified various parameters for reducing dwell time and transaction costs in the Major Ports. These include elimination of manual forms, accommodation for laboratories to Participating Government Agencies (PGAs), Direct Port Delivery, Installation of Container Scanners, E-delivery orders; RFID based Gate-automation System, etc.

These initiatives have already been implemented at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JN

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Port) and are being taken up in other Major Ports.

Elimination of manual forms has cut down long queues and waiting time for containers at the port gate and enabled faster evacuation of EXIM cargo and reduced congestion at port gates.The RFID solution has been implemented in all Major Ports to enhance security, remove bottlenecks for seamless movement of traffic across port gates, ensure tracking & tracing of man, material, vehicle, equipment, & other assets, and collection of revenue as per the notified rates.

A centralized web-based Port Community System (PCS) has been operationalized across all Major Ports which enables seamless data flow between the various stakeholders viz. Customs, CFSs, Shipping Lines &ICDs,Lines/Agents, Surveyors, Stevedores, Banks, Container Freight Stations, Government regulatory agencies, Customs House agents, Importers, Exporters, CONCOR/Railways, etc. through common interface. The present system PCS 1.0 has been upgraded to PCS 1x .

The ministry has issued an order dated 27.3.2018 making use of e-invoice, e-payment and e-delivery order mandatory for all stakeholders across all Major Ports, all terminals within the Major Ports, private ports, private terminals and CFSs/ ICDs.

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MARINE LINES, December 2018. RNI No. Under Process, Title Code: GUJENG16193

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