Parliament Question: Maritime Skill Development

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3385 ANSWERED ON 07.08.2026 MARITIME SKILL DEVELOPMENT 3385. SHRI GANESH SINGH: Will the Minister of PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS be pleased to state: प(cid:419)न, पोत प(cid:464)रवहन और जलमाग (cid:91) म(cid:287)ं ी (a) the growth in the number of registered Indian seafarers since 2014, year-wise and the measures taken by the Government to make India a leading global supplier of skilled maritime manpower; (b) the progress made in developing the country as a global hub for shipbuilding, ship repair and ship recycling, including the status of the Maritime Development Fund, proposed shipbuilding clusters and mega shipbuilding parks; and (c) the present status of maritime education, training institutions, simulators and certification infrastructure for achieving the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 target of 4 million Gross Tonnage shipbuilding capacity? ANSWER MINISTER OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS (SHRI SARBANANDA SONOWAL) (a) As per Baltic and International Maritime Council (BIMCO) and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) Seafarer Workforce Report, India has improved to 2nd rank globally in year 2025 contributing 12.16% of global share of seafarers as compared to 5th rank contributing 5.2% of global share of seafarers in year 2015. The number of active Indian seafarers has shown a growth of nearly 176%, increasing from 1,17,090 in 2014 to 3,23,429 in 2025. The year-wise detail is as tabulated below: Year Seafarer 2014 117090 2015 126945 2016 143940 2017 1543492018 208799 2019 234886 2020 224478 2021 205787 2022 250186 2023 285454 2024 307901 2025 323429 The Government through Directorate General of Maritime Administration (DGMA), a subordinate body under Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has undertaken several strategic initiatives to position India as a leading global supplier of skilled maritime manpower. The details are as follows: i. Nationwide awareness and outreach programmes have been undertaken, across schools, colleges, universities, National Cadet Corps (NCC) units and other educational institutions to promote maritime careers among students from both coastal and non-coastal regions. ii. Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) have been integrated with Maritime Training Institutes (MTIs), creating a structured pathway for technically qualified youth to pursue maritime careers. Through this initiative, ITIs across the country have been linked with MTIs, enabling students from technical trades such as Electrician, Fitter, Welder, Machinist, Marine Engine Fitter, Refrigeration Technician and other engineering disciplines to undergo maritime training and transition into employment in the Merchant Navy and the maritime sector. iii. A structured framework has been prepared for Agniveers and retired personnel from Indian Navy, to transition into the Merchant Navy through recognition of their education, training and sea service, supplemented by bridge courses and certification, wherever required. This initiative facilitates the seamless induction of trained and experienced defence personnel into the merchant shipping sector, thereby augmenting India's pool of highly skilled maritime professionals. iv. e-Samudra digital platform has been operationalised to provide a comprehensive paperless e-Governance ecosystem covering maritime training, certification, examinations, ship registration, statutory approvals, licensing and other stakeholder services. The platform will streamline service delivery, improve transparency, reduce processing time, and enhance ease of doing business while strengthening the administration of maritime education, training and certification. (b) A comprehensive Rs.69,725 crore Ship building package has been approved by the Government, to strengthen domestic capacity, maritime financing, shipyard development, skilling, and reforms. Key components of this includes:i. Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme (SBFAS) with Rs. 24,736 crores to enhance scope and address cost disadvantages faced by Indian shipyards against foreign shipyard. ii. Maritime Development Fund (MDF) of Rs. 25,000 crores comprising a Rs. 20,000 crore Maritime Investment Fund (MIF) and Rs. 5,000 crore Interest Incentivisation Fund to strengthen long-term financing in the sector. SBI ventures Limited has been appointed as the Fund manager for MIF. iii. Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SbDS) with Rs. 19,989 crores outlay to expand capacity to 4.5 million Gross Tonnage annually while supporting greenfield shipbuilding clusters. National Shipbuilding Mission (NSbM), an interministerial body, has been established as the nodal agency to oversee the implementation of Shipbuilding schemes viz. Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Scheme (SBFAS) and Shipbuilding Development Scheme (SBDS) launched by Government of India. Under Shipbuilding Development Scheme, proposals for the development of greenfield shipbuilding clusters in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, as well as three brownfield capacity expansion projects of various existing shipyards have been given in-principle approval, after appraisal by NSbM. To strengthen the ship recycling ecosystem, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways has released financial assistance of Rs. 53.5 crore under the Ferrous Scrap Development Fund (FSDF) to 109 Indian ship recycling yards to support yards modernization. Assistance of Rs. 2.49 crore per annum is released from FSDF for development and operation of a multispecialty hospital at Alang, Gujarat. In addition, Rs. 12 lakh per annum under the FSDF is also released for maintenance and operation of another primary hospital at Alang, Gujarat. These measures have helped the yards to become Hong Kong Convention (HKC) compliant and at present 115 operational ship recycling yards at Alang are HKC compliant. The HKC compliance allows India to target a larger global market share by positioning Indian ship recycling yards as safe, certified, and environmentally responsible destinations for global shipping fleets. For enhancing competitiveness, Government of India has launched Shipbreaking Credit Note Scheme, under which ship owners receive a credit note equivalent to 40% of scrap value of recycled ship when the recycling is done at a HKC compliant Indian ship recycling yard. The credit note can be utilized towards payment of up to 5% of the value of a new ship built at an Indian shipyard, thus promoting both domestic ship recycling and shipbuilding. (c) India has developed a comprehensive maritime education, training and certification ecosystem to support the future manpower requirements of the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047. The current ecosystem comprises 176 Maritime Training Institutes (MTIs), including 81 Pre-Sea Institutes and 95 Post-Sea Institutes, offering a wide range of officer and rating courses. The approved annual intake capacity stands at 23,717 candidates in pre-sea courses and 22,264 candidates in post-sea courses. India also has a well-established simulator training ecosystem across DGMA approved Maritime Training Institutes, with 20 simulator-based courses being conducted nationwide. Modern training facilities include Full Mission BridgeSimulators, Full Mission Engine Room Simulators, Radar/ARPA, ECDIS, GMDSS, Liquid Cargo Handling, LNG/LPG, and Ship Manoeuvring Simulators, enabling trainees to gain practical experience in a controlled environment. Between 2020 and 2025, more than 1.15 lakh candidates underwent various simulator-based training programmes, reflecting the growing importance of simulation-led competency development. Further, the initiatives taken for Skill development are as follows:  150-hour OJT model has been introduced in Shipyards for ITI trainees and as part of these 727 trainees have already been trained till date in these yards.  Training of Trainers (ToT) program has been implemented at 2 ITIs in West Bengal by Centre of Excellence in Maritime Shipbuidling (CEMS).  A preliminary Skill Gap Study has been completed across 9 shipyards.  Indian Ship Technology Centre (ISTC) has been established as a Section 8 company to facilitate skilling.  A total of 92,697 candidates has been trained/skilled/upskilled during the last 3 years. The detailed institution-wise skilling progress achieved are placed at Annexure-I.Annexure-I Training and Upskilling of Employees No. of No. of No. of Employees Employees Employees S. Organisation (Skilled/ (Skilled/ (Skilled/ No. Upskilled in Upskilled in Upskilled in 2023-24) 2024-25) 2025-26) 1 Kamarajar Port Limited 36 60 44 2 Mormugao Port Authority 589 828 499 3 Chennai Port Authority 528 857 679 Visakhapatnam Port 4 2781 3525 2975 Authority 5 Cochin Port Authority 290 302 340 6 Mumbai Port Authority 1294 1300 1168 Jawaharlal Nehru Port 7 619 477 574 Authority National Inland Navigation 8 Institute & Maritime Skill 2288 1697 2406 Development Council TOTAL 6137 7349 6279 Training and Skill development of New Trainees No. of No. of No. of S. Trainees Trainees Trainees Organisation No. (Trained in (Trained in (Trained in 2023-24) 2024-25) 2025-26) 1 Cochin Shipyard Ltd. 655 571 1090 JNPA Multi-Skill Development 2 Centre 663 970 792 Indian Register of Shipping 3 (IRClass) 811 1207 1399 4 NTCPWC (IIT Madras) 45 60 68 Directorate General of Shipping 5 (DGS) (through affiliated institutes) 16,310 17,820 18,414 6 CEMS (Exclusive of Major Ports) 2479 3257 4968 7 Major Ports (through CEMS) 175 300 433 8 IMU (with CGSSC support) - - 44521,138 24,185 27,609 TOTAL OJT Trainees at Shipyards Shipyard OJT Trained Cochin Shipyard (CSL) 100 Swan Defence (SDHIL) 230 Goa Shipyard (GSL) 22 Hooghly Cochin (HCSL) 60 Mazagon Dock (MDL) 57 Garden Reach (GRSE) 193 Titagarh Naval Systems 65 TOTAL 727 *****