Context:
The Lok Sabha passed the Merchant Shipping Bill, 2024 on August 6, 2025, amidst ongoing opposition protests. The Bill is a major step toward modernizing India’s maritime legislation and aligns with the government’s broader agenda to strengthen the blue economy and maritime governance.
Why the Bill Matters?
- Repeals the outdated Merchant Shipping Act, 1958, reducing complexity—from 561 sections to 16 parts and 325 clauses.
- Modernizes maritime law to align with global conventions (MARPOL, Wreck Removal, ILO–MLC, STCW).
- Enables India to emerge as a credible and competitive maritime hub.
Key Provisions:
1. Expanded Ownership Criteria
- Allows NRIs, OCIs, body corporates, and joint ventures to own Indian-flagged vessels.
- Permits bareboat charter cum demise (BBCD) vessels to be registered before full ownership transfer.
- Helps increase Indian tonnage, cut foreign outflows, and grow the domestic fleet.
2. Detaining Stateless Vessels
- Government empowered to seize or detain vessels deemed to be without nationality within Indian waters.
3. Marine Casualty Inquiry Mechanism
- Framework for investigation of marine incidents, including pollution, ship wrecks, and emergencies.
- Enables enforcement of IMO conventions for environmental protection.
4. Seafarer Welfare & Training
- Introduces statutory obligations aligned with the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006).
- Oversees health, repatriation, skill training, and accountability of Recruitment & Placement Agencies (RPS).
- Aligns ship crew training with STCW Convention norms, boosting employability.
5. Safety, Salvage & Environmental Protection
- Adopts provisions from Nairobi Wreck Removal (2007), Salvage Convention (1989), and Bunker Oil Convention.
- Grants statutory powers for pollution control, inspection, wreck removal, and effective emergency response—critical for India’s 95% trade reliance on shipping.
