India Considers Barring Old Ships

August 7th, 2007 · Comments - by John -

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The Indian government is considering a law barring ships over 25 years of age from docking in the country’s ports. The Economic Times of India tells us:

The government is charting out guidelines to bar entry of aged overseas ships into Indian coasts. Ships aged 25 years and above may soon be disallowed to dock at Indian coasts.

“The policy is currently being framed by the Directorate of Shipping. The ships have an average age of 17 years. the government has taken a serious view that ships which become vulnerable after 25 months would not be entertained,” a senior government official said.

According to sources in the government, the aim is to narrow down risks attributed to vulnerable ships on Indian coasts. An expert group of officials from state government, the shipping ministry and surveyors would be formed to check the age of fleet.

“The idea is to bring a threshold age for the ships. While we will target 25-year-plus ships in the beginning, later even 20-year-old ships will be targeted as the average age of a ship is 17 years,” the official said. Read More…

Also included in the law is a requirement for port officials to check a ship’s class inspections and incident history. According to the Indian shipping ministry, 17,000 ships are currently overage in the world.

What are your thoughts on this issue… Should a ship be barred just because of it’s age?

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Captain John Konrad is co-founder of Unofficial Networks and Editor In Chief of this blog. He is a USCG licensed Master Mariner of Unlimited Tonnage and, since graduating from SUNY Maritime College, has sailed a variety of ships to ports around the world. He currently lives in Morro Bay, California with his wife and two children.
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