the goan I network
PANAJI
The Director General of Shipping, Mumbai under the Central Ministry of Shipping on Wednesday evening issued an order detailing the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and protocols for controlled crew change thereby clearing the path for around 180 Goan seafarers to return home after a long wait at Mumbai Port.
The SOPs were issued in accordance with the Ministry of Home Affairs guidelines issued on April 21, which laid down that “DG, Shipping will prescribe the detailed protocol with regards to sign on and sign off to be followed in the above cases”.
Presently, around 180 to 190 Goan seafarers are stuck onboard three ships in Mumbai. While around 66 Goan seafarers are onboard ‘Marella Discovery’, 93 seafarers are stuck onboard cruise liner ‘Karnika’ and 24 on another cruise ship, ‘Angriya’.
The strict compliance of the SOPs by all stakeholders is expected to facilitate and regulate crew change so that the safe environment onboard the ship remains uncompromised while also ensuring that no contamination is brought from the ship to the shore.
As per the protocol for sign on, the onus of identifying seafarers for joining a vessel is on the ship owner or the Recruitment and Placement Service (RPS) agency. The selected seafarer is expected to disclose his or her contact history of the previous 28 days by email. Following this, a DGS approved medical examiner will assess and certify the seafarer’s fitness to join the ship. The medical examiner may call the seafarers for a standard medical examination as prescribed by DGS.
Upon securing medical certification, the seafarer’s travel route is to be identified. Based on this, DGS will issue an epass which has to be submitted by the seafarers to their local authorities for clearance and issuance of transit pass. These transit passes will be for a fixed route and with specified validity.
A host of processes will then have to be complied with by the ship owner or RPS agency.
During sign on, the seafarer will undergo a Covid-19 test at the port of embarkation. The seafarer will be kept at a safe location pending the test results.
As per the SOP for sign off, the master of the vessel will have to ascertain the health status of each crew member before arrival at an Indian port and submit a declaration of the same to the health authorities at the port and to the port authorities.
While disembarking, seafarers will have to wear personal protective equipment such as a face mask and hand gloves. They will be cleared by immigratiuon authorities upon disembarking.
Thereafter, they will have to undergo a Covid-19 test to confirm their health status. Till the test reports are received, the seafarers will be kept at a quarantine facility approved by the port authorities and the concerned state health authorities.
If a seafarer tests positive for Covid-19, DGS oder states, “S/he will be dealt with as per the procedure laid down by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of India.”
In addition to this, DGS has ordered seafarers arriving from a foreign port within 14 days since their departure to be kept in a quarantine for 14 days upon arrival. These seafarers will be tested for Covid-19 at the end of the quarantine period.
DGS has laid down a similar procedure for securing an e-pass and a transit pass upon sign off as has been detailed for sign on.
The SOPs state that ship owners and RPS agencies, while bearing the cost of transporting the seafarers, may decide to isolate a seafarer for 14 days prior to medical examination for sign on.
These SOPs are to be read along with the order issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs on April 21 in regards to this matter.
In its previous orders dated March 23 and 24, DGS had advised Indian seafarers to take utmost caution in respect of sign off at foregin ports due to international and domestic travel restrictions imposed across the world.
