Parliament Question: Maritime Training Institutes in the Country

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 1101 ANSWERED ON 05.12.2025 MARITIME TRAINING INSTITUTES IN THE COUNTRY 1101. SHRI ANURAG SINGH THAKUR Will the Minister of PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS be pleased to state: प(cid:517)न, पोत प(cid:303)रवहन और जलमाग(cid:330) मं(cid:361)ी (a) the total number of private Maritime Training Institutes (MTIs) in the country and courses currently approved by the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS), State-wise and course-wise along with the criteria for such approvals, including simulators, seatime arrangements, faculty student ratios and infrastructure standards; (b) whether the Government has noticed instances of unapproved private entities offering course completion certificates or foreign Certificates of Proficiency to Indian seafarers and if so,the details thereof and the actions taken theron; (c) whether DGS has issued any guidelines to tighten compliance with (STCW) requirements, if so, the details and the status of implementation thereof across private MTIs; (d) the measures being taken to ensure that admissions to pre-sea courses in private institutes are routed through IMU-CET; and (e) whether the Government is planning to mandate real-time digital attendance & assessment logs integrated with the DGS e-governance portal and strengthen the Comprehensive Inspection Program, create public dashboard publishing each private MTI’s placement records, inspection scores akin to NIRF, if so, the details thereof ANSWER MINISTER OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS (SHRI SARBANANDA SONOWAL) a) (i) Total number of Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) approved MTIs is 167. Out of these, 54 MTIs are conducting simulator courses. The State-wise number of MTIs and the DGS approved Course-wise number of MTIs are given at Annexure I and Annexure II, respectively.(ii) The DGS guidelines mandate Principal, faculty and instructor to be appropriately qualified in accordance with the provision of section A-I/6 of the Standards of Training Certification and Watchkeeping for seafarers (STCW) Code for the type and level of training and/or assessment performed. (iii) For respective courses, the minimum qualification of faculty are prescribed in the respective DGS Course Guidelines. The student to instructor ratio for practical trainings are prescribed in the respective DGS Course Guidelines. (iv) The Directorate General of Shipping (DGS) has prescribed detailed infrastructure standards for all Maritime Training Institutes (MTIs) as part of the approval process. These standards cover 17 key areas, including land requirements, construction quality, safety systems, classrooms, laboratories, teaching aids, library, hostel facilities, fire- fighting mock-ups, simulators, faculty areas, and other academic and general infrastructure. (v) The complete and course-specific requirements for all these infrastructure elements are provided in the Training Manuals and Approval Guidelines issued by DGS. These manuals specify the criteria for approvals, including simulator requirements, sea-time arrangements, equipment norms, and other mandatory facilities. (vi) Individual MTIs seeking approval or renewal are required to refer the relevant Training Manuals available on the DGS website for detailed information on all 17 infrastructure standards and course-wise compliance requirements. Sr. Section Infrastructure Requirement No. Land requirements Requirements related to minimum land area and 1. for Institute ownership/lease norms Shifting of Land / Conditions and approvals required for shifting the 2. Premises institute location Address for 3. Registered and operational address requirements correspondence Construction Standards for building quality, safety, materials, and 4. quality compliance Fire safety, evacuation plans, emergency exits, safety 5. General Safety signage Alternate source of Backup power, generator capacity, uninterrupted 6. electric supply learning environmentDispensary and First-aid room, medical officer availability, emergency 7. Medical arrangements emergencies Office space, administrative support rooms, record- 8. Administrative area keeping areas Dedicated room for faculty preparation, seating, and 9. Faculty room storage Classroom Seating capacity, ventilation, lighting, furnishing, 10. requirements classroom area standards Projectors, boards, audio-visual equipment, training 11. Teaching aids materials Books, digital resources, seating, librarian, subject- 12. Library specific collections 13. General Facilities Washrooms, drinking water, recreation, common areas Labs, workshops, simulator rooms, equipment mandated 14. Academic Facilities per course Fire fighting mock- Fire-fighting training area, mock-up structures, 15. up equipment Dining hall, kitchen hygiene standards, food safety 16. Catering compliance Hostel and Accommodation, sanitation, security, supervision, 17. residential facilities common facilities (b) There have been reported cases of maritime training institutes which are not approved by DG Shipping and have been found to be issuing certificates without actual delivery of the training as required under the STCW convention. In all such reported cases, the DGS has communicated the details of the incident to the Chief Secretary DGP and the respective District Magistrate for their intervention and action against such entities. The State Governments were requested to verify the allegations about institutes charging money for issuing certificates and job placement on ship, and to take action for violations for not adhering to the guidelines of DGS. Further, DGS has undertaken several social media awareness campaigns for the benefit of aspiring seafarers wishing to enroll in maritime training courses. In cases, where the same management was running two institutes one approved by DGS and another unapproved, DGS has suspended the approved MTI. In cases, where DGS-approved MTI were found issuing certificates without actually conducting the course, DGS has withdrawn approval of such MTIs.The Directorate General of Shipping has issued DGS(NT/Eng) Circular No.31 of 2025 and the DGS Order No.08 of 2025 to ensure that the Certificate of Competency (CoC) and Certificate of Proficiency (CoP) are issued to an Indian Seafarer after following due process and in accordance to the requirements of the STCW Convention of the IMO. (c) The DGS has issued an updated Training Manual in the month of February 2025 to tighten the compliance with the STCW requirement. The DGS mandate Comprehensive Inspection Programme (CIP) to be undertaken by the MTI either through the Recognized Organisation or through the Mercantile Marine Departments (MMDs). The Directorate had issued guidelines, viz.DGS Order No.23 of 2014 and DGS Order No. 04 of 2016 and DGS Training Circular No.33 of 2018 for the MTIs to comply with the CIP requirements. (d) Admissions to pre-sea courses are required to be primarily routed through the Indian Maritime University – Common Entrance Test (IMU-CET) to insure quality and transparency in maritime education. As per DGS Training Circular No. 21/2025, MTIs must admit at least 60% of candidates from the IMU-CET merit list. To prevent under- utilization of training capacity and support MIV 2030 goals, a controlled second-phase admission pathway is proposed only for remaining vacant seats, with strict eligibility criteria (minimum 60% PCM and appearance in JEE/State Engineering Entrance). All such admissions must be recorded on the DGS e-Governance portal, ensuring full transparency, compliance, and adherence to DGS/STCW standards. (e) Several digital reforms have been undertaken to strengthen transparency compliance and monitoring across MTIs. DGS has undertaken real-time digital attendance through Centralized Attendance System (CAS) 2.0, the Digital Training & Assessment Record and the upgraded MTI module on the e-Governance portal for secure real time data capture and seamless integration with the DGS e-Gov. Portal for improved over sight and unified reporting. The Comprehensive Inspection Programme is also being strengthened with updated KPIs, revised grading weightages and the inclusion of faculty quality parameters.Annexure I State-Wise number of MTIs: State/UT Number of MTIs Andaman and Nicobar Islands 1 Andhra Pradesh 4 Bihar 3 Delhi 6 Goa 6 Gujarat 4 Haryana 4 Karnataka 1 Kerala 9 Maharashtra 46 Odisha 5 Punjab 1 Rajasthan 1 Sikkim 1 Tamil Nadu 37 Telangana 1 Uttar Pradesh 14 Uttarakhand 4 West Bengal 19 Total 167Annexure II DGS approved Course-wise number of MTIs Number Name of DGS Approved Course of MTIs Advanced Training course for Ships Operating in Polar waters 2 Advanced Training for Chemical Tanker Cargo Operations 33 Advanced Training for Liquified Gas Tanker Cargo Operations 17 Advanced Training for Oil Tanker Cargo Operations 33 Advanced Training in Fire Fighting 38 Advanced Trg. for Ships using Fuels covered within IGF code 18 Assessment, Examination and Certification of Seafarers 14 Augmentation of FPFF (Practical Tanker Fire Fighting) 1 Automatic Radar Plotting Aids 27 B.Sc Nautical Science 25 Basic Safety Training 146 Basic Trainig for Ships using Fuels covered within IGF code 26 Basic Training for Liquified Gas Tanker Cargo Operations 49 Basic Training for Oil and Chemical Tanker Cargo Operations 84 Basic Training for Ships Operating in Polar water Course 2 BE / B-Tech Marine Engineering 29 Bridging Course for Existing Electrical Officers to ETO 1 Bridging Courses from MEO Class III CEO to MEO Class I NCV [upto 8000 1 kw other than tankers] Bridging Courses from MEO Class III SEO to MEO Class II NCV SEO [upto 1 8000 kw other than tankers] Certificate Course In Maritime Caterring 24 Chief Mate (FG) - Phase I 22 Chief Mate (FG) - Phase II 23 Company Security Officer 1 Competency Course for Chief Mate NCV Phase 2 exam 1 Crisis Management and Human Behaviour 14 Crowd Management, Passenger Safety and Safety Training 49 Diesel Engine Combustion Gas Simulator 18 Diploma In Nautical Science 31 Electro Technical Officers 22 Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems 29 Engine Room Simulator - Management level 25 Engine Room Simulator - Operational level 26Extra Chief Engineer 1 Familiarization Course for Medical Examiner of Seafarers 1 Fast Rescue Boats 1 General Operator`s Certificate for GMDSS 23 Graduate Marine Engineering 30 High Voltage Safety and Switch Gear at Management level 20 High Voltage Safety and Switch Gear at Operational level 28 Higher National Diploma Course (Nautical Science) 1 LNG Tanker Cargo and Ballast handling Simulator 1 Indian Maritime Legislation Course 1 LPG Tanker Cargo and Ballast handling Simulator 2 Marine Bioler & Steam Engineering Course - Operational level 2 Marine Bioler & Steam Engineering. Course - Management level 1 Master (NCV) Advanced Shipboard Management 1 Master FG Advanced Shipboard Management 19 Mate of Home Trade ship - NCV 1 Medical First Aid 51 Medical Care 26 MEO (CEO-NCV ) 1 MEO (NCV SEO) Part A 1 MEO (NCV SEO) Part B 1 MEO Class - I 21 MEO Class - II 37 MEO Class - IV (NCV) 1 MEO Class IV 1 Navigational Watchkeeping Officer- NCV 2 Orientation Course for Catering Personal 8 Personal Safety & Social Responsibilities 2 Port Facility Security Officer 1 Pre-sea Training for Diploma Holders 4 Proficiency In Survival Craft and Rescue Boats 41 Radar and Navigation Simulator 20 Radar Observer Simulator 27 Refresher &Updating Training Course for Engineers-Management 1 Refresher and Updating Training Course for all Engineers 28 Refresher Course for Medical Examiner of Seafarers 1 Refresher Training for Advanced Training in Fire Fighting 44 Refresher Training for Medical Care 29Refresher Training for Medical First Aid 47 Refresher Training for Proficiency in FPFF 90 Refresher Training For Proficiency In PSCRB 43 Refresher Training for Proficiency in PST 88 Revalidation Training Course for Masters and Deck Officers 21 Second Mate (FG) Competency Course 28 Second Mate (FG) Foundation Course 3 Security Trng. for Seafarer with Designated Security Duties 143 Ship Manoeuvering Simulator 15 Ship Security Officer 38 Ship`s Cook 1 Simulator- Liquid Cargo Handling - Oil - Management level 12 Train the Simulator Trainer and Assessor Course 6 Training for General Purpose Ratings 76 Vertical Integration Course for Trainers - VICT 27 *****