Issuance of Certificate of Endorsement (COE) to Indian citizens in possession of Certificate of Competency (COC), issued under STCW Regulation II/2 and III/2, from Australia, Singapore, Ireland and New Zealand, in addition to UK to sail on Indian flag vessels -reg

Directorate General of Shipping, Mumbai Ministry of Shipping, lS/lSOClause Govt. of lndia No.7 1 Authorized by Subject: lssuance of Certificate of Endorsement (C0E) to lndian citizens File No: the Chief in possession of Certificate of Competency (C0C), issued under STCW ENG/EXAM/CI Examiner of Regulation llllan d llll2, from Australia, Singapore, lreland and New RC-2511)t2017 Master mates Zealand, in addition to UK to sail on lndian flag vessels. Dated:- and Engineers lnstructions to Examiners- 02.12.2019 1. lntroduction 1.1. ln the yeat 2014. the Directorate received representations from various stakeholders including INSA to allow engagement of lndians, holding ce(ificate of competency (COC) issued under STCW Regulation 1ll2 and llll2 from Australia, Singapore, lreland and New Zealand, in addition to UK, to sail on lndian Flag vessels as a measure to address inadequacy in the availability of management level officers to man lndian Flag vessels. 1 ,2. After due deliberation, the Director General of Shipping in his/her powers under Section 456 of MS Act, 1958 had partially relaxed Section 86(1) (a) and allowed issuance of COE to lndian Nationals holding Australia. Singapore, lreland and New Zealand COC to sail on lndia Flag vessels in addition to UK COC holders on fulfillment of certain specific conditions such as deployment of one Nautical Cadet or one Engineering Cadet/Trainee Marine Engineer/Junior Engrneer during each period of such deployment. 1.3. ln view of above relaxation. the Drrectorate had issued following circulars apart from DGS order 2 ol 2015 & DGS order 1 of 2012 (meant only for lndians holding UK COC): 1 3.1. NT/ENG Circular No 02 of 20'14 dated 27 .05.2014. 1 3.2. Engineering Circular No. 04 of 2014 dated 23.04.2014. 1.3 3. Engineering Crrcular No 04A of 2014 dated 02.0620 14 '1 .3.4. Corrigendum to NT/ENG Circular No 02 of 2014 dated 04 08 2014 1.4. The above relaxation was valid until3l December 2016. I Page 1 of 71.5.|n 2017. INSA and other stakeholders vide their representation to the Director General of Shipping requested extension to the aforesaid relaxation for a further three-year period citing continuous shortage of management level officers to man lndian Flag vessels. Noting the shortage of management level officers to man lndian Flag vessels and after due deliberations, the Director General of Shipping extended issuance of Certificate of Endorsement till 31 12.2019, vide NT/ENG Circular No 3 of 2017 dated 12.10.2017 1.6. To consolidate all the requirements, following circulars were superseded by NT/ENG Circular No 3 of 2017 (i) All circulars and DGS Order mentioned in paragraph 1.3. (ii) Corrigendum No 2 to NT/ENG Circular No 02 of 2014 dated 10.02.2016. (iii) Training circular No. 7 ot 2002 dated 30 July 2002. (iv) Training circular No 57 dated 21 January 2OO4 (v) Training circular No. 90 of dated 2June 2005. (vi) EAC Branch Circular No. 90 dated 2 June 2005. (vii) NT/ENG Circular 14 dated 30,08.2013 1,7.Now again INSA vide its letter no. CEO/036/2019/(S-19) dated 5 July 2019 has stated continued difficulties being faced by its members to operate specia[zed vessels such as LPG, LNG, VLCC & fully Cellular ships due to shortage rn availability of experienced management level officers of the ranks of Master/Chief Engineer and Chief Officer/Second Engineer 1 .8. The Director General of shipping in his powers under Seclion 456 of MS Act 1958 has now partially relaxed Section 86(1) (a) for a further period of two years enabling lndian Nationals holding COC from Australia, Singapore, lreland, New Zealand and UK to contlnue to sail on lndia Flag vessels till 3'l December 2021 on fulfillment of certain specific conditions such as deployment of one Nautrcal Cadet or one Engineering CadeUTrainee Marine Engineer/Junior Engineer during each period of such deployment of above COE holder. 1.9 This circular hereby supersedes NT/ENGG Circular No 3 of 2017and all other crrculars, which have been superseded, vide NT/ENGG Circular 3 of 2017. 2 Applicability: This circular is applicable tor 2.1 Management level officers (Master, Chief Engineer, Chief Officer and Second Engineer) holding COC issued under STCW Regulation ll/2 or Regulatron ltt/2 &- Page 2 ol 7from Australia, lreland, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and UK and are willing to work on lndian Flag vessels and 2.2 Operational level officers such as Fourth Engineer/Third Engineer and Second Officerffhird officer holding COC issued under STCW Regulation lll/1 and Regulation ll/1 respectively from any country mentioned in Paragraph 2.1 above who had been issued COE prior to 27th April 2014by the lndian Administration. Requirements 3.1COE under Regulation l/10 of STCW 78 as amended may be considered subject to fulfillment of the following: 3.1.1 The prospective employer to submit a declaration that the authenticity of the COC held by the Officer to be employed has been verified and a copy of print out of internet verification duly certified by the employer representative to be attached with the application form. 3.1.2 lndian citizens holding management level certificates under STCW 78 as amended, issued by the Maritime authorities of countries stated in Paragraph 2.1 above may either undergo training of three days in lndian Maritime legislation Course conducted by LBS, CAMSAR or successfully pass an oral examination conducted at various Mercantile Marine Department for the purpose of COE under Regulation l/10 of STCW-78, as amended. The syllabus for the said course and oral examination is attached as an Annexure-l with this circular. ln case, the seafarer opts for the said lndian Maritime Legislation training course, a copy of the course completion certificate to be attached with the application form for obtaining coE. 3.2 The issuance of COE to holders of COC from Maritime Nations stated in paragraph 2.1 above shall also be subjected to the following conditions: 3.2.1 Deployment of such COE holders on any lndian ship shall be done in conjunction with the deployment of one Nautical cadet pursuing a B.Sc.(Nautical)/DNS(Diploma in Nautical Science leading to B.Sc in Nautical Science) for each COE issued to a Nautical officer and/or one trainee Marine Engineer pursuing the G.M.E. (Graduate in Marine Engineering)/D.M.E. (Diploma in Marine Engineering)/ATS (Alternate Training scheme)/Four-years Bachelor Degree in Marine Engineering for Page 3 of 7 #"each COE issued to an Engineer Officer and each trme the COE holder ts deployed 3.2.2 The deployment of the trainees mentioned under paragraph 3.2.1 shall be over and above the Tonnage Tax commitment of the concerned company. An undertaking from the prospective employer indicatrng the following to be submitted along with the application form (i) Name of the trainee to be deployed and his/her CDC number (ii) Name and IMO number of the vessel on which he/she rs contemplated to be deployed 3.3Ship owners have the option to arrange provision of such traintng on another lndian ship or a ship of the company's subsidiary abroad 3.4The Master and/or the Chief Engineer of the ship are required to supervrse the training imparted to these trainees as per the prescribed training modules in the approved Training Record {TAR} books. ln case the officer to be employeo is joining as Master/chief Engineer, an undertaking stating his/her responsibility to train all the trainees sailing on board the vessel. he/she is contemplated to join, to be taken and submitted along with the application for issuance of COE 3.5 Since the COE will be issued valid for two years. it is incumbent upon the employer to ensure compliance with above provisions. each time the COE holder is engaged onboard therr ship, failing which the DOC issued to lhe company. rs liable to be withdrawn 4 Procedure for issuance of COE and its revalidation 4.1 Application for COE along with self-attested copies of the . declarations/certificates/documents mentioned in paragraph 3 (Requirements) above to be submitted at any Mercantile Marine Department. Self-attested copies of all pages of valid COC including any restriction imposed on the COC, valid Medical Certificate, the required valid STCW course certificates and a copy of valid lndian CDC are to be attached ,t1 Payment of prescribed fees. +. r. After a satisfactory review of above submissions, the Principal Officer of concerned Mercantile Marine Department may issue "Acknowledgement of Application "using the format attached as Annexure-ll with this circular. PaBe 4 of 7 ,f(*This Acknowledgement will remain valid for three months from the date of issue and may be used to place the officer on board an lndian Flag vessel by the prospective employer. 4.4. The concerned Mercantile Marine Department would then fonarard the along-with of application form copies all declarations/certificates/documents received and acknowledgement and recommendation to the Directorate General of Shipping for the tssuance of COE for a maximum period of two years or until3l December 2021 whichever is earlier. The Principal Officers of the MMDs may endorse the COE {already issued by the Director General of shipping) for revalidation after ensuring that all requirements mentioned rn this circular are complied with. No COE shall be re-validated to a date beyond 31 December 2021 and copy of revalidated COE to be forwarded to the Directorate General of Shipping for updating record. 1.6. Shipping Companies can apply for extension of existing COE {issued under NT/ENGG Circular 03 of 2017)which have been issued till 31 December 2019 or for a period of less than two years from date of issue of Acknowledgement of Receipt. The concerned Mercantile Marine Departments may extend the validity for two years from date of issue of Acknowledgement of Receipt {Subject to an undertaking from prospective employer that the seafarer will be.ioining their ship). Where the seafarer is sailing on board, the Company can apply to Directorate {by submitting an application, photocopies of COE & Acknowledgement of Receipt) for issuance of a new COE valid for 2-years from date of issue of Acknowledgement of Receipt or until 31 .12.2021, whichever is earlier. Shipping companies are responsible for submission of old original COE to be submitted to the Directorate within 1-month of issuance of new. 5. lssuance of Dangerous Cargo Endorsements to holders of COE: 5.1 . DCE can be issued to lndian COE holders in accordance with procedures for issuance of DCE to lndian COC holders. 5.2. The DCE issued must carry a note stating, "This endorsement shall remain valid till the time COE/Acknowledgement of receipt of COE application, issued to the candidate remains valid. Page 5 of 76. Enforcement 6.1 .Trainee deployed in compliance with this circular on a ship should be for the purpcse of trainee to complete its training period or the period of deployment of COE holder, whichever is later. When trainee signs off for any reason prior to sign-off of the COE holder, another trainee to be placed until the trainee completes its training or period of deployment of COE holder, whichever is later. 6.2.The COE holder is not allowed to sail on vessels owned by Company other than the one which has given the undertaking stated in Para 3.2.2, same may be verified during Flag state lnspection. 6.3. The COE of the seafarer will be cancelled and the seafarer will nol be considered for issuance of any COE in future, if he is found sailing on a ship owned by a Company other than the one which has given the undertaking stated in Para 3.2.2. 6.4. At each sign-off, the Company is required to give to the COE holder, on its letterhead, details of trainee employed additional to its Tonnage tax commitment during the period of deployment of COE holder. These letters have to be submitted to concerned MMD for any extension/renewal of COE. 6.5.1n case, the Company {which has given the undertaking as per 3.2,2} do not intend to employ the COE holder again and the COE is still valid; same to be informed by the Company to concerned MMD and the Directorate. The COE holder is required to deposit his COE to concerned MMD. Each MMD is required to maintain a record of such returned COE. 7. Note: The issuance of certiflcate of Endorsement is a one-off measure granted to the lndian Seafarers stated in Paragraph 2 above. lt does not give any right to an lndian Seafarers with foreign COC or an lndian Flag Ship-owner/Manager to request for issuance of COE beyond 31 December 2021. This Circular is issued with the approval of the Competent Authority. (Vikrant Rai) Engineer & Ship Surveyor- cum-DDG (Tech) Page 6 of 7To: 1. The Principal Officer Mercantile Marine Department, Mumbai / Chennai / Kolkata / Kochi/Kandla. 2. The surveyo r- In-charge, Mercantile Marine Department, Noida/ Visakhapatnam 3 INSA / FOSMfu MASSA / ICSSAJ MUI / IMEI, 4. AD (OL) Hindi Cell, with a request to translate this circular in Hindi &upload on DGS website. 5. Engineering Branch/Nautical Branch/Naval Architecture BranchiTraining Branch. 6 The computer cell, DGS, GOI with a request to upload this circular on the official website. 7 E-governance Cell, DGS, GOI 8. Sr. PS to DG(S) for information. 9 Sr. PS to CS/NA for information. Page 7 of 7'l'^'\' .a"6&\s,r v(r,'aw \I.!.68 ,/ _\\E&-//-z \..2 ANNEXUREI to NT ENG Circular No.04 of 2019 INDIAN MARITII\4E LEGISLATION COURSE FOR MANAGEMENT LEVEL OFFICERS HOLDING CERTIFICATE OF COIVIPETENCY FROM AUSTRALIA, SINGAPORE, IRETAND & NEW ZELAND IN ADDITION TO UK No Syllabus Hours (a) Registration of Ships. The certificate of registry and its legal significance 2 Hours. (b) Engagement, discharge and management of crew. Manning scales and 3 Hours. certification. Contracts of employment, wages and other remuneration advance, allotments, payment into bank accounts. Decryptions, deceased seamen, engagement of substitutes, repatriation. (c) The official log book and the law relating to entries. Offences relatang to 2 Hours misconduct, to endangering ship and against persons on board. Discipline and treatment of disciplinary offences. Trade disputes involving seamen. (d) The official log book entries and reports in respect of free board draft and 1Hour. allowances. (e) Crew accommodation. Hygiene of the ship and welfare of the crew. All outline 2 Hours. knowledge of the regulations relating to medical stores. lnsPection and reports. Fresh water and provisions. Procedures in cases of infectious disease, illness or accidents. Maritime declarations of health. Port health requirements. lnternational agreements and measures to prevent the spread of disease by shipping. (n The safety of the ship, crew and passengers. Assistance to vessels in distress 4 Hours. and salvage. Master's duties in the case of collision or any other accident. Lodging protects etc. lnquires and lnvestigation. (s) The law relating to the reporting of ice, derelict tropical revolving storms and '1 Hour other dangers to navigation. (h) Amendments to Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 (44 of 1958) 2 Hours. l (i) To have outline knowledge of the rules made under the Merchant ShiPping Hour Act. Total 18 Hours,-rrcR{, fKCj)v \NrIfFiz? rs\\g-l4. --=J: ANNEXURE-ll to NT ENG Circular No.04 of 2019 DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF SHIPPING, Ministry of Shipping, Government of lndia lnternational convention on standards of Training, certification and watch keeping Seafarers, 1978 as amended, Regulation l/10 Acknowledgement of application for Endorsement Attesting the Recognition of a Certificate (Other than Radio Officer / Radio operator) Date. Place. Reference No. Receipt of an application for endorsement attesting recognition of certificate issued in favour of of Passport / CDC NO No holding Certificate of ComPetency No. issued by on Date is hereby by acknowledged. Capacity Limitations (if anY) This acknowledgement is not in any way evidence of certificate of competency and is subject to issue of Endorsement by this Administration as required by STCW 78 as amended provisions. This receipt of application for endorsement may however be used for a maximum of three months from the date of this receipt as proof of having applied for the said endorsement which is in the process of being issued as per prescribed procedure and assessment of applicant PRINCIPAL OFFICER MMD Mumbai/Chennai/Kandla/Kochi/Kolkata