The situation is grim as some 20,000 Indian seafarers are likely to lose their jobs as companies are not recruiting them on China-bound commercial vessels. China is the world’s largest trading nation. Indian seafarers are employed by commercial shipping companies across the world. China’s alleged unofficial entry ban on Indian sailers, if allowed to continue, portends evil for the country’s seafarers as also for the RBI which receives billions of dollars in foreign exchange from our ocean bound sailers. It is only natural for the seafarers’ union to seek support from the union government under such circumstances.

China is India’s biggest import source. The UN COMTRADE database on international trade shows India’s imports from China was worth US$58.8 Billion during 2020 while India's exports to China was only worth $20.87 billion. A vast majority of China’s trade with India is conducted on China’s terms. China sells mostly on the c.i.f. basis and buys f.o.b. The cost, insurance and freight (c.i.f.) combine is an international shipping agreement, which represents the charges paid by a seller to cover the costs, insurance, and freight of a buyer's order while the cargo is in transit

The goods are exported to the buyer’s port named in the sales contract. The purchase on f.o.b. means buying ‘free on board’ while insurance and freight costs are borne by the importer. China makes large additional income on account of insurance and freight on both its exports and imports at India’s cost. India has been a big loser on the China trade on both the accounts. Now, the latest unofficial ban on Indian sailers entering Chinese ports will further throttle the placement of Indian vessels on the Chinese water. One expects the Indian government to thoroughly investigate into the matter and take some strong actions, including substantially curtail import from China and impose such informal non-tariff barriers as delaying the entry of Chinese vessels or those carrying imports from China into Indian ports for days.

Surprisingly, the Indian government has brushed aside the country’s seafarers’ union complaints with an amazing response that it is officially unaware of the Chinese ban on Indian sailers. If the ban is ‘unwritten’ how do the Indian authorities expect an official communication from China in this regard? Anyway, such regressive measures are also against the international maritime laws. The union’s working president, Abhijeet Sangle, said China’s tactic to isolate Indian seafarers is meant to provide better opportunities to its own sailors. He said earlier this year, China did not allow two foreign ships with Indian sailors onboard to berth in its port. “As a result of which our crew of over 40 members were stranded off China for several weeks,” Sangle said. However, DG (Shipping) Amitabh Kumar reportedly said that they have not received any official communication from either the Chinese government or the ministry of external affairs about any such ban. Indian media reports said MEA sources also denied of having any knowledge of the matter. One would expect the concerned government bodies — the shipping ministry, the DG Shipping and external affairs ministry — seriously enquire into the seafarers’ union complaints before airing an opinion. If they find truth in the union’s report, the government must take a tit-for-tat policy, banning c.i.f import from China or insist on a cargo sharing agreement on the lines it had with the Soviet Union in the 1970s.

Traditionally, India has shown little concern for its sailors in the ocean trade. The government provides little legal help to Indian seafarers, who get illegally detained abroad for no fault of their own. According to the Maritime Union of India, representing merchant navy officers, scores of Indian seafarers are currently languishing in foreign jails. Recently, MUI General Secretary Amar Singh Thakur said that “around 500 Indian seafarers were lodged in foreign jails due to criminal charges, lack of proper documentation, detention of vessels, and abandonment of ships, among others.” Only those who are able to contact their relatives in India manage to get legal support and assistance through MUI, he said. A legal and diplomatic support from the Indian government is what these helplessly detained seafarers desperately need in such circumstances.

About 240,000 Indians work as commercial seafarers out of a global workforce of nearly 1.7 million sailors crewing some 50,000 cargo ships. Of these seafarers, 774,000 are officers and 873,500 are ratings. The surge in Covid-19 cases in India has hit the livelihoods of many of these workers hard. China, the Philippines, Indonesia, the Russian Federation and Ukraine are the five largest seafarers (officers and ratings) suppliers. The Philippines is the biggest supplier of ratings, followed by China, Indonesia, the Russian Federation and Ukraine. China is the biggest supplier of officers, followed by the Philippines, India, Indonesia and the Russian Federation.

The demand for officers has lately increased by around 24.1 percent, while the same for ratings is up by just one percent. There is an approximate shortage of 16,500 officers and a surplus of around 119,000 ratings. The global supply of officers is forecast to increase steadily, going by the growth projection of the world merchant fleet over the next 10 years and the anticipated demand for seafarers. Thus, the shortage of qualified and competent seafarers will continue in the coming years. And, India must utilise its trade muscle — worth nearly a trillion dollar and growing — to build a strong commercial shipping industry for its own and play an important role in the local as well as global shipping manpower supply effort, take measures to promote and protect careers at sea and enhance maritime education and training. (IPA Service)