Career in Merchant Navy

Since time immemorial, ships at sea have beckoned the brave and adventurous. The attraction of riches in this profession has been subject of many a folklore. Even today, the situation remains more or less the same, except that today the ships are far more safer than they were in the times of Vasco-da-Gamma and Columbus. Today, there is hardly any career which can fetch such high salaries at such a young age that the Merchant Navy offers. Unfortunately, the knowledge on the subject of "What is Merchant Navy & How do i join it ?" still remains the privilege of very few people who already have relatives and friends in this industry. With this in background, in this section we wish to tell you all about career in Merchant Navy. The ships today are highly sophisticated and technology intensive. Safety and efficiency of the ship are crucial and depends upon the professional ability, competence and dedication to duty, of a seafarer, on board ship. Naturally, a seafarer is expected to be highly professional for the safe and efficient operation of the ship. The training in India is of exceptionally high standards and the Indian seafarers are one of the most sought after commodity in the shipping industry worldwide. Needless to say that an Indian seafarer demands and does gets highly paid.

WHAT ARE THE PAY AND PERKS ?
The pay and perks depend upon the type of the ship, experience and competency of an individual. At the starting level, a rating may get 700 - 1000 US $. Among officers a 3rd Officer/4th Engineer gets about 1500 - 2000 US $, 2nd Officer / 3rd Engineer - 2200 - 2500 US $, Chief Officer/2nd Engineer - 3000 - 3500 US $ and a Chief Engineer / Master - 4000 - 5000 US $. An individual can attain the rank of 3rd officer at the age of approx. 23 yrs and Master by the age of about 35 yrs.

WHAT ARE THE VARIOUS JOBS?
(a) Deck Officer - The officers from this branch primarily look after the ships navigation, loading/unloading of cargo and the general maintenance and administration of the ship. The officer joins in the rank of 3rd officer and is subsequently promoted to the rank of 2nd officer, Chief Officer and finally the Master of the ship. Off course, the promotions are subject to the individual passing his competency exams and his performance onboard the ship. In addition to navigation duties, normally a 3rd officer looks after the life saving appliances, 2nd officer the passage planning and the navigation equipment, the Chief Officer looks after the cargo work and the Master is the overall in-charge of the ship.

(b) Engineering Officer - These are the officer who are qualified in Marine Engineering. They join as 4th Engineer and step by step, get promoted to 3rd, 2nd and Chief Engineer, subject to their passing the competency exams and performance onboard the ship. The Engineering department in addition to looking after the main engines, are also responsible for associated equipment like power generation equipment, cargo pumps and air - conditioning etc. The4the Engineer is responsible for operation and maintenance of engine room auxiliaries. The 3rd engineer for fuel, water and the boiler room equipment. The 2nd engineer for lubricating the system, engine room auxiliaries, and electric equipment. In addition, there is an electrical officer, who is responsible for the electrical equipment.

(c) Radio Officers - The Radio Officers looks after all the electronic communication and the related records. In addition, he also looks after electronic navigation aids such as radar, depth measuring devices, long range navigation equipment and global positioning system etc. However, this category of personnel has been almost phased out and their duties passed over to other deck officers. To be qualified as Radio Officer an individual need to do a two week GMDSS course.

(e) Purser - He is an officer who looks after all the administrative work related to pay and perks of personnel onboard. However, this category of personnel has also been almost phased out and their duties passed over to other deck officers.

(f) Ratings - There are three kinds of ratings - deck, engine room and catering. Deck rating is responsible for cargo handling, mooring/ unmooring and general maintenance of the ship. Similarly the engine room ratings assist the engineering officers in maintenance and operation of engines and associated equipment. The catering crew consists of Steward / Cooks and as the name suggests, they look after the catering and the house keeping of officers cabin.