IRS not matured yet to handle entire survey pie

It is a victory for Indian shipowners who had opposed the Directorate of Shipping’s decision to withdraw authorisation granted to six leading international classification societies to undertake statutory surveys on Indian flag vessels. In the order No.: MSL-11(19)/95 II dated July 22, 2008 the Directorate General of Shipping has reversed it earlier decision of April 30, 2008 and has thus restored the status quo.
According to shipping circles the Indian Register of Shipping had lobbied intensely to get the foreign classification societies sidelined and to corner the entire operation of statutory surveying which was being carried out by the six foreign classification societies. Accordingly, a notice was issued to the classification societies by the DGS on April 30 which read: “The administration is grateful to you for assisting us in carrying out the survey (sic) all these years; and now the government is satisfied that the IRS is in a position to undertake the entire survey requirements of the Government of India.” The notification was signed by deputy DGS Samuel Darse.
The Indian National Shipowners’ Association took strong exception to the withdrawal of authorisation. In their representation to the Director-General of Shipping, they informed that the decision to give the monopoly on all statutory surveys to the Indian Register of Shipping could seriously inconvenience Indian vessels in remote international waters.
The gnawing worry of Indian shipowners was ‘what would happen to the Indian fleet if the global societies washed their hands off Indian vessels? They would become classless; their insurance costs would sky-rocket, and they would suffer by being held up in ports located in remote corners of the world.
Shipping Corporation of India chairman, Sabyasachi Hajara, who is also president of the Indian National Shipowners’ Association, pointed out that, whereas five of the six international classification societies affected had at least a hundred offices each, all over the world, the IRS had offices in a mere seven countries, including India.
“Two of the IRS offices has a single surveyor each”, informed a spokesman of a classification society. “Obviously, if Indian vessels are stuck at some distant port for a survey job, the IRS would not find it easy to cater to its requirement. Most of the top global class societies could have a surveyor reach virtually any port in the world within 24 hours. Whereas for IRS this would mean that the vessel would have to remain immobilised until an available surveyor gets there from the closest IRS office, after obtaining the requisite visa – which can be a time-consuming process.”
A spokesman for INSA informed that IRS does not have the expertise even for ship building. Foreign shipyards don’t recognise the competence of the IRS to conduct the survey at every stage of ship building. Even in shipyards in India, the first surveys are conducted by foreign classification societies. Foreign shipowners who have placed orders for new buildings in Indian shipyards get their ships surveyed mostly by the foreign classification societies. IRS does not have the necessary exposure except in Indian shipyards such as Cochin shipyard etc, where small vessels are constructed.
In its latest order the DGS has informed “The degree of authorisation would remain as per current agreement excepting that the scope of authorisation would be kept limited to all statutory surveys carried out outside Indian and Sri Lankan geographical jurisdiction. However, in the event that statutory surveys on a vessel commenced outside Indian and Sri Lankan jurisdiction, call at an Indian or Sri Lankan port or come within Indian or Sri Lankan jurisdiction subsequently the same may be completed in Indian or Sri Lankan jurisdiction by the concerned classification society.”
However, the concerned classification societies state that this amendment to the earlier order will in no way impact their business. “We have a mutual arrangement with IRS and we do conduct surveys on behalf of IRS even prior to order that debars them in the Indian and Sri Lankan territories.”
IRS has still to attain the level of maturity as that of the top classification societies. The DGS has outsourced a number of tasks to the IRS which has not gone down well with the trade especially because of several of the old guard of the IRS and a number of experts have put in their papers following differences with the management. No doubt many of the vacancies are being filled up with raw hands but as a spokesman in the shipping circles says, “If a surveyor has never seen the sea or worked on a ship, how can he do a good job of surveying of a ship?”