Seagull 100 Inner - Indian Maritime Foundation · Letter from Canada Cdr. M S Randhawa I.N. (Retd.)...

VOL. 24 No.100Feb 20 - Apr 20

Celebrating the journey!

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Vol XXIV No 100February 20 - April 20

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McCain DisastergCaptain

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New Zealand’s VolcanoFrom National Geographic

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Maritime CrosswordCdr Sati Taneja (Retd)

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Shipping Out NoiseHindustan Times

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New Home for IMF MuseumCapt AC Dixit

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Report on Joint SeminarCmde Ajay Chitnis (Retd)

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Kon Tiki Expedition &Museum

Cdr Mukund Yeolekar (Retd)

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Letter from LondonPaul Ridgway FRGS FRIN

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Letter from CanadaCdr. M S Randhawa I.N. (Retd.)

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Change of Command at IMFCmde Ajay Chitnis

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IMF’s 26th AnniversaryCapt Sunand Kanetkar (Retd)

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A National Hero Recounts his adventure

Cmde Ajay Chitnis

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Junior SIMA Painting CompetitionCapt AC Dixit

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KV Svalbard Arctic VesselEdited by Paul Ridgway London

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Interview with Cmde Vir

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Op Talwar Cmde Kesnur

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Coastal Clean-upCmde PK Malhotra

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125 Years of Kiel CanalPeter Neunhäuser

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Gallimaufry

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Projected Future Skills of Mariners

Shri Sukerna Amirapu

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Book Review Capt Paranjape

Commodore Anil Jai Singh (Retd)

H-403, Daffodil, Jalvayu Vihar,

Vice President, Indian Maritime FoundationH.No. 25, Arun Vihar, Sector 28, Noida – 201303, UP

Tel: 0120 – 4222254, Mob: [email protected]

Kharghar, Navi Mumbai - 410 210

Vice President, Indian Maritime Foundation

Mob: 98332 65913. e-mail : [email protected]

Delhi Branch of IMF

Mumbai Branch of IMFCommodore Ajay H. Chitnis (Retd)

( [email protected] )

SeaGull is Published by

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Tel. : +91-20-41315976

Capt S Krishnamurthi

Toulon, France : Rear Adm (Retd) Valere Ortoli

Vice President, Indian Maritime Foundation

Sanmar Shipping Limited, 9 Cathedral Road,Chennai - 600086.

Auckland, NZ : Mr S.Amirapu

Sydney, Australia : Mrs Jennifer Knox

London : Mr Paul Ridgway

Berlin, Germany : Dr Peter Neunhäuser

Chennai Branch of IMF

e-mail : President: [email protected]

Toronto, Canada : Cdr M S Randhawa (Retd)

SeaGull Editor : Cdr Mukund YeolekarOffice Manager: Julie Mathew – Mob: 9146305010

Vice President- Operations ( Technical )

The Indian Maritime Foundation : 1/402, Gera Gardens, Koregaon Road, Pune- 411001.

Honorary Correspondents

Bangalore : Mr Ramesh Narayan

Office :91- 44- 2812 8468, Mob 9940500114.

Houston, USA : Mr Atul Vir

Miami, USA : Mr Rahul VirSingapore : Capt R Choudhuri

Website : www.indianmaritimefoundation.org

IMF : [email protected]

The Sea Our Strength

Marine Art, Seminars, Museum and Library, MRC CommitteeLectures in School and Colleges

Commodore Rajan Vir (Retd), President Emeritus, (Tel.: 26169168 / 9823655692)

The Indian Maritime Foundation - Council Members

MRC Committee, I/C Facebook

[email protected][email protected]

[email protected]

Cmde Ajay H. Chitnis (Tel.: 26854784 / 9833265913)Vice President, Joint Editor – SeaGull, Seminars,

Capt. R Hajarnavis (Tel.: 25650016 / 9850094294)[email protected]

Senior Vice President, Mentor Advertisements

Mr Yezdi Batliwala (Tel: 9975264501/26834637)Advertisements, Underwater Technology, International CoastalCleanup, STCW Revision Committee

Secretary, Public Relations, Membership, Lectures in Schools &

[email protected] Arnab Das ( Tel : 9665033463 )

Mrs Nalini Kunte (Tel.: 26163927 / 9850314665)

Colleges, SIMA Committee, Museum & Library [email protected]

Lectures in Pune University, Seminars, Manager Museum, Associate Editor SeaGull

Seagull Editorial Committee, Website [email protected]

Capt. Sunand Kanetkar (Tel: 26854741, 9833370041)

Director Maritime Research Centre

Museum & Library committeeMrs. Poonam Gulati (Tel.: 26353104 / 9975518653)

[email protected]

[email protected] Committee

[email protected] PK Malhotra (Tel:26852841, 9823172737)ICC Coordinator, India North, Museum & Library Committee.

Ocean Savers of [email protected] Indrajit Roy (Tel: 27278485, 7719889353)

Mr Gopi Shetty Maliyadri (Tel: 8149450844, 27652442)

Cdr M.N. Yeolekar (Tel: 9923343150, 9969686322)

[email protected] Editorial Committee, Seminars.

Seminar Convener

[email protected]

Capt Sudhir Subhedar (Tel: 9823158057, 020-25449783).

Cmde JJ Varma (Tel: 9599655375, 020-29703037)

STCW Revision Committee

[email protected]

Museum & Library Committee (Lectures Schools/Colleges)[email protected]

Lt Cdr Pramod Mahajan (Tel: 9422306390)[email protected] & Library CommitteeLectures in Pune University, Editor SeaGull,

Views expressed in this journal are those of the authors only. The contents may be reproduced with written permission of the editor.

Capt AC Dixit , President

Coastal Cleanup, Museum & Library

Overall Development, Treasurer, Mentor SeaGull, Lectures in Pune University, MRC, STCW Revision,

Tel.: 25656726 / 9890488242, [email protected]

Our goal is to raise awareness of our seas and to rekindle maritime consciousness and pride.

2 SeaGull February 20 - April 20

Editorial

Editorial

NOTICE BOARD

April 20 - Exhibition of SIMA paintings.

27 Feb 20 - Corporate Lunch at Royal Bombay Yacht Club, Mumbai.March 20 - Inauguration of Maritime Museum at new location.

Feb 2020 - Wreath Laying Ceremony at Seafarers’ Memorial.

Editorial

Alas, the IMF’s Maritime Museum and Library housed in the Deccan College for five years had to vacate in December. We were fortunate to shift to a new and bigger location in Anantrao Pawar Engineering College near Parvati Hill in Pune. We expect to attract a larger crowd of visitors now, especially students.

The last quarter saw a flurry of activities in the IMF. In coordination with the Navy and Nautical Institute a Joint Seminar was held on 14 Nov 2019 at Mumbai on the topic of Maritime Safety – Problems, Prognosis and Prescriptions’. A report is included in this issue.

thI am elated and indeed proud to present the 100 issue of Seagull which has completed a glorious quarter century. Mentored by founder members of the IMF and with the support of Editorial Board, umpteen ardent contributors and readers over the years, it has grown from strength to strength to its present state. I am pleased to acknowledge the timely and precious contribution by former Editors and Joint/Associate Editors, particularly Late Cdr R Gulati, Cmde Ajay Chitnis, Late Capt Sujit Choudhary, Capt Anand Dixit and Capt Sunand Kanetkar.

In this issue I am fortunate to include interesting articles on the Operation Talwar by Indian Navy during Kargil War, the McCain Disaster, Kiel Canal and the environment friendly Azipod Propulsion ship.

A Painting competition and Maritime Quiz were held on 17 Nov ’19 for Junior Members of Society of Indian Marine Artists at Empress Garden Pune.

The IMF celebrated its 26th Anniversary on 05 Jan 2020. The chief guest at the function V Adm AK Chawla, FOC-in-C Southern Naval Command gave an interesting presentation on China’s Martime Strategy. The IMF also had a change at its helm. The founding father and architect of IMF, Commodore Rajan Vir handed over the reigns to experienced mariner Captain Anand Dixit on 07 Jan 2020. We congratulate Capt Dixit and wish him all the best.

Several events hogged the headlines in the international arena. Tension between Iran and US heightened with the killing of a powerful Iranian military leader, Gen. Qassim Soleimani on 02 Jan 2020. A twenty month trade war between US and China seemed to subside with the signing of a trade deal on 15 Jan 20. In Dec ’19 a volcano erupted in New Zealand while bush fires raged unabated in Australia. North India shivered in cold wave conditions while the South awaited a delayed winter.

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Editorial

SeaGull February 20 - April 20

Why The New Zealand Volcano Eruption Caught The World By SurpriseFrom National Geographic

Volcanic pressure cooker. Magma happens to sit close to the surface at Whakaari/White Island, and the molten rock constantly degases and heats up the plentiful supply of groundwater. In addition, the magma's path to the surface at this vent can get blocked, sometimes through the precipitation of minerals. That can lead to gases getting trapped underneath, where they keep accumulating and getting heated, creating a pocket of superheated elements somewhat like a pressure cooker. The sizzling water is often trying to boil off into steam, but it remains a liquid because of the immense pressure.

Invisible warning signs. Whakaari/White Island is the summit of a complex submarine volcano. According to the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program, it is highly ebullient, engaging in a variety of eruption styles. Many feature moderate explosions. As a result of its hyperactivity, and the frequency with which tourists visit, Whakaari/White Island is heavily monitored. Scientists were keeping a close eye on it to try and spot any behaviors that could potentially indicate the volcano was gearing up for something explosive. Volcanologists with GNS Science, a New Zealand-based consulting

group, spot ted some local ized surface deformation a few weeks earlier. In this case, the activity didn't indicate that any major build-up of pressure was happening. Still authorities did raise the volcano's alert level. Alert level rises don't mean that an eruption is inevitable, and in many cases, no eruption is forthcoming. Unfortunately, this time was a deadly exception.

Published December 9, 2019

On Monday,09 Dec2019 2:11 p.m. local time, an explosive eruption rocked White Island, a small volcanic isle in New Zealand's Bay of Plenty. A series of violent blasts rang out, flinging ash 12,000 feet into the sky and showering the volcano's floor with hot debris, before everything fell silent a handful of minutes later. It quickly became apparent that lives were lost. A number of tourists were on the island at the time, several of whom were right next to the volcano's active vent. At the time of writing, five deaths have been officially recorded, with several more people still unaccounted for. Recent reconnaissance flights over the island, also known by its Māori name Whakaari, have found no signs of life. For this sort of volcanic paroxysm, “this was probably the actual worst-case scenario,” says Shane Cronin, a volcanologist and Earth scientist at the University of Auckland. “This is a case of people being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Janine Krippner, a volcanologist at the Smithsonian Institution's Global Volcanism Program.

That means any crack in this geologic pressure cooker can p roduce a savage , speedy decompression event. The liquid water flashes to steam, expanding its volume 1,700 times in a heartbeat. The expansion energy is enough to shatter rocks and carve out geologic scars. When the pressure at the vent is released, a decompression wave rockets down into the volcano's throat, where it encounters more pressurized water. Sometimes, the shockwave hits the magma, turning what is a steam-based outburst into a magma-driven eruption.

Environment


The USS McCain DisasterLessons to Learn

The McCain, relied upon a navigation system the Navy considered a triumph of technology and thrift. It featured slick black touch screens to operate the ship's wheel and propellers. It knit together information from radars and digital maps. It would save money by requiring fewer sailors to safely steer the ship. One of the most seasoned, Cmde Alfredo Sanchez, was captain of the McCain.

Sanchez had watched as technicians replaced the ship's traditional steering controls a year earlier with the new navigation system. Almost from the start, it caused him headaches. The system constantly indicated problems with steering. They were mostly false alarms, quickly fixed, but by March 2017, Sanchez's engineers were calling the system “unstable,” with “multiple and cascading failures regularly.” Sanchez grew to distrust the navigation system, especially for use in delicate operations. He often ordered it to run in backup manual mode, which eliminated some of the automated functions but also created new risks.

In August 2017, Sanchez and his crew steered the ship toward a naval base in Singapore, where technicians were waiting. The navigation system had indicated more than 60 “major steering faults” during the month. The McCain never reached its destination.

The Collision

In the early hours of Aug. 21, 2017, the McCain was 20 miles from Singapore, navigating one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. Sanchez was on the bridge to assist in the complex maneuvers

ahead. He ordered a sailor to take over steering the warship while another sailor controlled its speed. The idea was to avoid distractions by having each man focus on a single task in the heavy maritime traffic.

To check that he had control, the helmsman tugged the ship's wheel slightly to the left. The McCain did not alter its course. He rotated it slightly to starboard. Again, the McCain maintained its track. He suddenly realized that the McCain was steaming uncontrolled toward the cargo ships sailing through the Singapore Strait and raised an alarm. The McCain began turning mysteriously to the left, slowly at first, and then faster. The ship drew closer and closer to the vessels plying the strait.

As the helmsman remained glued to the screen before him, there was quiet in the dark of the bridge as sailors darted around, staring at gauges, flipping buttons, trying in one way or another to figure out what was happening. Sanchez's eyes flew across the ship's banks of screens in his own desperate attempt to avert disaster. Three minutes and 19 seconds after the alarm, the McCain collided violently with a 30,000-ton Liberian-flagged oil tanker. Ten Navy sailors were killed and scores more were injured. It was the Navy's worst accident at sea in 40 years.

Investigations by the Navy and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), concluded that the navigation system itself had not malfunctioned. The ship's hard turn to the left and the inability to correct it was the result of a series of mistakes by the helmsman and fellow sailors.

Immediate responsibility, the Navy ruled, rested with Sanchez, his officers and senior sailors. They had been lax, even complacent, in their training of the sailors steering the ship. Sanchez had made a critical error in not adding more sailors to stand watch as the McCain navigated the treacherous

Flawed Bridge Technology Set The USS McCain Up For Disaster. The USS John S. McCain, an 8,300-ton destroyer was part of the Navy's famed 7th Fleet, and was responsible for patrolling global hot spots, shadowing Chinese warships in the South China Sea and tracking North Korean missile launches.

Defence


The Navy, while publicly blaming the McCain's crew, also took steps to make sure other sailors were better equipped to avoid similar disasters. Commanders issued new instructions to the Navy's entire fleet of destroyers on how to properly use the navigation system to avoid the kinds of mistakes that could lead to “inadvertent” loss of control.

Courtesy : gCaptain.com

Despite its issues, the IBNS operated for years without major incident. Navy sailors did what they have always done: They found ways to make do with an imperfect technology. The NTSB put it plainly: “The design of the John S McCain's touch-screen steering and thrust control system,” the board found, “increased the likelihood of the operator errors that led to the collision.” The Navy investigators, for their part, determined that the system's “known vulnerabilities” and risks had not been “clearly communicated to the operators on ships with these systems.”

In the end, though, the Navy punished its own sailors for failing to master a flawed system that they had been inadequately trained on and that the Navy itself came to admit it did not fully understand. Just before Sanchez's trial, the Navy dropped a homicide charge and he pleaded guilty

to dereliction of duty. The chief petty officer responsible for training also pleaded guilty. Navy officials said they had taken steps to fix the “complex touch-screen controls” of the navigation system. Over the next seven years, the Navy will install physical throttles and simplified touch screens on newly built Navy destroyers and retrofit 32 existing destroyers with the improved design.

strait. Sanchez was charged with homicide. A chief petty officer, responsible for training the sailors to use the navigation system, was charged with dereliction of duty. But a ProPublica examination shows that the Navy pursued prosecutions of the two men even as its investigators and those with the NTSB were learning that the navigation system, if it hadn't technically malfunctioned, had played a critical role in the deadly outcome in the Pacific.Its very design, investigators determined, left sailors dangerously vulnerable to making the kinds of operational mistakes that doomed the McCain . The Integrated Br idge and Navigation System, or IBNS, as it was known, was no technical marvel. It was a welter of buttons, gauges and software that, poorly understood and not surprisingly misused, helped guide 10 sailors to their deaths.

A Navy spokesman, stood by the assertion that the navigation system did not play a major role in the accident. He cited human error compounded by “complacency, indifference, non-compliance, overconfidence and disregard for watch-standing requirements.”

On delving into records, govt reports and unreported transcripts it emerged that the Navy's response to the loss of life on the McCain closely mirrored how it dealt with a deadly accident involving another 7th Fleet destroyer, the USS Fitzgerald two months before.

The Fitzgerald did not have the new navigation system, but then, as with the McCain, the Navy laid blame on sailors and officers while downplaying the role of decisions made at the very highest levels of the service. The Navy disciplined several admirals in charge of the 7th Fleet, but it stopped short of senior leadership, including the former chief of naval operations, John Richardson, who allowed ships to sail without having enough time to conduct training or repairs. Now retired, Richardson told stated that the two disasters were “avoidable tragedies” and that commanders “own” the outcome of their decisions. The Navy has committed almost half a billion dollars to build the navigation system and install it on more than 60 destroyers by the end of the next decade — the entire fleet of the tough, stalwart warships that form the backbone of the modern Navy. Yet no one responsible for the development or deployment of the technology has faced any known consequences for the McCain disaster.

Defence


Maritime CrosswordCdr Sati Taneja (Retd)

Crossword

1

2

3

4

5 6

7 8

9 10

11

12 13

14 15

16 17 18

19 20

21

22

23

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of a pirate attack

20. Device for adjusting tension in stays or shrouds

18. Thin strip of wood or plastic

23. Two loaded ships secured on either side of a ship then emptied to reduce the draft of the middle ship

1. Lower end of sail Across

9. A knot used to join two ropes

16. Vessels sails and rigging

19. Refers to the four main points of the compass-North South East and West

21. Large bank of sand or earth caused by action of the sea

2. Stop, cease or desist from what is being done

7. Knot

11. A fortified safe room in which to take shelter in event

24. The sides of a block or gun carriage

6. A unit of length equal to six feet

12. Long lines of cable leading from aft to the masthead

17. A navigable channel in a harbour usually used by ships

22. Shallow portion of a reef over which waves break

1. The distance travelled by the wind or wavesDown

2. Over to the Port side 3. At the back end of a ship also known as the Poop deck

8. Maximum speed of a ship. Used in Us Naval ships

14. A mast or pole and a boom hinged freely at the bottom used for lifting material

19. Y shaped metal pins to hold oars when rowing

12. The stand on which the ships compass is mounted

10. Transfer of goods or passengers of one country to another part of the same country by a vessel or aircraft of another

4. The raised edge of a hatch 5. A post or pair mounted on ships bow for fastening ropes or

cables

21. Loss of control causing change of direction

15. To furl the sail by pulling it towards the mast

13. Group of ships saailing together for mutual support

9. Structure built to protect an anchorage from weather


A New Home for IMF's Museum & LibraryBy Capt AC Dixit

Following the signing of MOU with the College authorities, the shifting of the Museum began in the first week of December 2019. All artifacts and exhibits were safely moved to the new location and in less than a month IMF had a new Museum

& Library in the APCOER within the Shahu College Campus near Parvati, Pune. The shifting was carried out under the supervision of Capt Rabi Mishra. The Museum & Library also includes a facility for Maritime Research Centre (MRC) set up and managed by Dr (Cdr) Arnab Das (Retd). Capt Sunand Kanetkar (Retd) is the Manager of the Museum & Library while Cdr Mukund Yeolekar is in charge of the artifacts.

Indian Maritime Foundation's Maritime Museum & Library, a brain child of Cmde Rajan Vir, the Founder President of IMF, came into being on 22 December 2012 at Deccan College, Pune. The Archaeological Department of Deccan College was home to IMF's Maritime Museum & Library for seven years and we were hopeful that it would continue there for many more years. But that was not to be. Deccan College needed the Museum premises for its own use and was unable to renew the MOU for a further period. When it became clear that a new place had to be found for the Museum and that too in a short time-frame, a frantic search for an alternative space began. That was when Mr Mukesh Malhotra, Managing Director of Weikfield Products Pvt Ltd, came to the rescue. Using his personal contacts, he was able to secure a suitable place for the Maritime Museum & Library at Anantrao Pawar College of Engineering and Research (APCOER) .

IMF is grateful to Mrs Pramila Gaikwad, General Secretary of Akhil Bharatiya Maratha Shikshan Parishad and the Principal of APCOER Dr Sunil Bhimrao Thakare for their whole hearted support and patronage, not to mention the role of Mr Mukesh Malhotra for offering his good offices to bring the entire arrangement together. The Shahu College Campus which comprises half a dozen major colleges with thousands of students is an ideal location for the Maritime Museum & Library and well suited to carry forward IMF's objectives of promoting India's maritime interests and rekindling maritime consciousness among the children and youth of India.

Capt AC Dixit is the President of IMF

Events

Museum in Anantrao Pawar College of Engineering and Research


Joint Seminar – Fostering Cooperation Between Seafaring CommunitiesMaritime Safety – Problems, Prognosis And Prescriptions

By Cmde Ajay Chitnis (Retd)

After a brief welcome address by Cdr Sodha, the

Master of Ceremonies, the Podium was handed over to Cmde Ajay Chitnis, Vice President IMF, to deliver the Opening Address, on behalf of the President IMF. In his opening address Cmde Chitnis brought out that this was the only forum in Ind i a whe re Sea fa r e r s f rom d i f f e r en t organizations came together for interaction on various aspects of usage of the sea for legitimate purposes as the global commons. He then

compared the concept of maritime safety to flight safety, and said that even though mariners had been around from time immemorial, the formalized concept of safety was lagging far behind Flight Safety, even though aviation itself

The Sixth Edition of the Joint Indian Navy, Indian Maritime Foundation, Nautical Institute, seminar

thwas held on the 14 of November 2019, at the INHS Asvini Auditorium in Mumbai. The aim of these joint seminars has been to bring the seafaring communities together to understand each others' roles, capabilities, and challenges, and thereby adopt the best practices of each service – the Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard and the Merchant Navy. The theme of this year's seminar was Maritime Safety, and thus the Seminar was aptly titled: 'Maritime Safety – Problems, Prognosis and Prescriptions'. Vice Admiral RB Pandit AVSM, Chief of Staff Western Naval Command was the Chief Guest, and the seminar was attended by Flag Officers and Senior Officers – both serving and retired of the Indian Navy, Members of the Nautical Institute, Council Members of the IMF, Senior Mariners from the Merchant Navy, Coast Guard Officers and a large number of Junior Officers from the Navy, Coast Guard and Trainees from various Nautical Training Institutes in Mumbai. It was almost a packed house at the magnificent Asvini Auditorium.

Events

V Adm RB Pandit addressing the seminar

The Participants


was barely over a century old, thus underlining the importance of this seminar. He then informed the audience about the Indian Maritime Foundation and its activities very briefly, and the role of the founder president – Cmde Rajan Vir, invoking the audience to give an ovation to this living legend. Cmde Chitnis, then introduced Capt Nick Nash, the President of the Nautical Institute, and a Chartered Master Mariner, presently in Command of the Cruise Liner Royal Princess, who had come all the way from London to attend the Seminar, and invited him to deliver the Inaugural Address.

The First Technical session was titled “Safety at Sea”, and was moderated by Capt Amol Deshmukh, a veteran seafarer, and an expert on Maritime Law. There were three speakers in this session – Capt Sudip Malik IN, from the Indian Navy Workup Team, Capt Gyanendra Singh AFNI, MD ABACA Research and Consultancy, and Commandant Alex Thomas ICG, from ICGS Samrat. Capt Malik's presentation was titled “Safety at Sea – Issues, Implications and Initiatives”, and dealt with the practical aspects of how safety procedures were dovetailed into the workup programs of warships. Capt Gyanendra Singh spoke about Navigation Audits. With some real-life examples, he highlighted the need for audits, and common observations across these audits. Comdt Alex Thomas spoke on Coast Guard Perspectives on Sea Safety including Fire and Flooding. The Q and A session was held after all three speakers had finished and elicited some very relevant questions from the audience. Capt

Capt Nick Nash delivered the Inaugural Address, and after complimenting the Nautical Institute's India West Branch, expressed his happiness at being in Mumbai. He gave a brief overview of the activities of the Nautical Institute and how the subject of Marine Safety occupied a high spot in their scheme of things. He also outlined some of the new activities being taken up by NI globally and how the absorption of newer technologies would help in raising the standards of seafaring across the globe.

Vice Admiral RB Pandit, Chief of Staff, Western Naval Command was the Chief Guest and delivered the Keynote Address. He informed that after a few safety related incidents in the Navy, it had been decided to set up a dedicated Maritime Safety Organization. This would be placed under

the Southern Naval Command, which is the Training Command of the Indian Navy, and be headed by the Flag Officer Maritime Safety. He agreed with Cmde Chitnis in as much as the aspect of the Navy lagging behind the Air Force in terms of 'Safety', as an organized activity. He exhorted all, especially the younger members of the audience in the front rows, to ingrain safety into their daily activities, be it ashore or afloat, at home or at the work place.

Events

Technical Session moderator Cmde O Johnson


This was followed by a Tea Break, during which the Group Photograph was taken, of all the speakers, moderators and dignitaries present.

A sumptuous “Networking Lunch” hosted by Western Naval Command was enjoyed by all present and was a good way to interact with mariners from various walks of life, and renew old acquaintances.

A special address was included immediately after the lunch break by Ms Liji Nowal, the MD of ODeX India Solutions Ltd. Though not directly connected with Maritime Safety, her talk titled “Blockchain in Shipping”, was included in the program as an indicator of how the shipping industry is absorbing cutting edge technology into business. She admitted to not being a seafarer, but an outsider brought in to suggest solutions technologically. To move one container from

The Second Technical Session, titled “General Safety”, was moderated by Cmde O Johnson, currently the Curator of the Maritime History Society. An erudite speaker himself, Cmde Johnson is one of the few naval officers who qualified as a Second Officer in the Merchant Navy, and thereafter joined the Indian Navy. The speakers in this session wee Capt Ashok Menon, a Master Mariner, Cmde Viresh Das from the recently set up Indian Naval Safety Team, and Capt Sanjiv Sehgal, Master Mariner. Capt Ashok Menon's presentation was titled “Tackling Cognitive Risks in the Maritime Industry”. His focus was on the fact that across the industry, incidents and accidents were analyzed and in most cases the Root Cause was identified as Human Error; however, the underlying cause of why the human erred is seldom investigated. He advocated the need to delve deeper into the functioning of the human brain as a way to understand how an individual learns, and how this learning is affected by various influences in the

deeper realms of the brain. Cmde Viresh Das made a presentation titled “Measures to Improve Safety Culture and Tools for Accident Prevention”. This in fact was an insight of what the newly formed Maritime Safety Organization stands for in the coming years. Capt Sanjiv Sehgal spoke about Risk Management and Controls, an integral element of the Safety management System on board. Cmde Johnson skillfully steered the discussions that followed, bringing to fore some of the major areas that need attention in ensuring safer seas and safer ships.

Amol Deshmukh summarized the session before bringing it to a close.

Events

Panel discussion moderated by Cmde Ajay Chitnis


place A to place B involved over 20 Agencies, as she discovered when she started getting associated with the maritime business. These included the manufacturers, the shippers, Customs, etc., and generated a plethora of paperwork. She and her company were involved in finding ways to streamline these activities using Blockchain Technology. Without getting too technical, she outlined the steps being taken, and was asked a number of questions at the end of her talk.

The Third Technical session was a Panel Discussion titled “Marine Safety – Myriad Issues, Multiple Players, and Complex Mosaic. The Panelists were Capt Sudip Malik from the Indian Naval Workup Team, Capt Subhal Nathan, Command Maritime Safety Officer from HQ Western Naval Command, Capt Kapil Dev Bahl, Master Mariner and Past President of Nautical Institute India West, and DIG Mehrotra, Chief Staff Officer Operations at HQ Coast Guard Western Region. The discussion was moderated by Cmde Ajay Chitnis, Vice President IMF, who began the proceedings with an observation of how modern technologies, often termed 'Disruptive', were in fact going to lead us to safer ships and more safety for seafarers. He opined that shipping is on the brink of a new era with technologies emerging around fuel and energy use, automation and vessel management , mater ials and construction and so many other areas, would lead to new generations of ships that bring substantial improvements to safety standards. He then introduced the panelists and began the discussions with asking Capt Subhal Nathan about how the recently introduced Safety Organization was functioning and whether any changes in the safety culture were noticeable. All the panelists were asked for their views on measures to improve upon safety standards, and how operations and safety aspects were dovetailed; how commercial pressures impacted safety issues; the role of

'Trust' on board ships, especially with multiple nationality crews on board; how the plethora of paper work is handled on board; has the introduction of the maritime safety organization in the Navy resulted in increased paperwork etc. The responses resulted in a lively discussion and were not only restricted to the panelists but were also opened up to the audience, whose active participation resulted in an extremely interesting session. The closing session began with a summing up of the day's proceedings by Cmde Srikant Kesnur, Director of the Maritime Warfare Centre, and the Chief Organizer of the Seminar. He brought to fore the various aspects highlighted by the speakers and commented on the discussions that followed.

The Valedictory Address was delivered by RAdm G Srinivasan, Admiral Superintendent, Naval Dockyard Mumbai. He highlighted the need to improve the safety culture amongst not only naval personnel but also the Dockyard workers, both at work as well as at home.

Mementos were presented to all the speakers and panelists, and moderators. A special Memento was presented to Cmde Rajan Vir, President of IMF, as he was recognized as the driving force behind these joint seminars, right from their introduction in 2011.

The vote of thanks was proposed by Capt Srikant Limaye, the Secretary of Nautical Institute West, and he presented mementos to Cmde Srikant Kesnur and Cdr Shrawan Kapila of the Maritime Warfare Centre, in recognition of their untiring efforts in organizing the seminar.

Cmde Ajay Chitnis SC, NM (Retd.)Vice President IMF

That brought the curtain down on yet another major endeavour of the IMF during the past quarter.

Events


The Kon-Tiki Expedition & Museum-OsloCdr Mukund Yeolekar (Retd)

While on a visit to Oslo (Norway) last year, I had an opportunity to visit a unique museum dedicated to an epic voyage. The incredible journey by a raft made of balsa logs, across the Pacific has been aptly depicted in this Museum so that future generations can admire the intrepid seamen who undertook the seemingly impossible voyage. Every detail of the journey has been clearly displayed in the museum in an interesting manner.

The main mast was made of lengths of mangrove wood lashed together to form an A-frame 8.8 m high. Behind the main-mast was a cabin of plaited bamboo 4.3 m long and 2.4 m wide was built about 1.2–1.5 m high, and roofed with banana leaf thatch. At the stern was a 5.8 m long steering oar of mangrove wood, with a blade of fir. The main sail was 4.6 by 5.5 m on a yard of bamboo stems lashed together. There was also a top-sail above the main sail, and also a mizzen-sail, mounted at the

stern. The raft was partially decked in split bamboo. The main spars were a laminate of wood and reeds and Heyerdahl tested more than twenty different composites before settling on one that proved an effective compromise between bulk and torsional rigidity. No metal was used in the construction.

With a crew of five Norwegians and one Swede the voyage began on April 28, 1947 from Callao, Peru. To avoid coastal traffic it was initially towed 80 km out by the Peruvian Navy, then sailed roughly west carried along on the Humboldt Current.

A Norwegian explorer and writer Thor Heyerdahl undertook this voyage across the Pacific in 1947 from South America to Polynesian islands. The raft was named Kon-Tiki after an Inca god. There was also an Academy Award winning documentary film Kon-Tiki which featured Heyerdahl's adventures. He believed that people from South America could have settled in Polynesia in Pre-Columbian times (before the arrival of Europeans in 1500s) and hence he undertook this voyage with minimum modern equipment such as radio, watches, sextant, knives etc. Heyerdahl took private loans to fund his expedition and also got help from US Army in the form of donated equipment. He went to Peru and received help from dockyard in constructing the raft out of balsa logs and other native materials.

Construction. The main body of the float was

composed of nine balsa tree trunks up to 14 m long, 60 cm in diameter, lashed together with 30 mm hemp ropes. Cross-pieces of balsa logs 5.5 m long and 30 cm in diameter were lashed across the logs at 91 cm intervals to give lateral support. Pine splash boards clad the bow, and lengths of pine 25 mm thick and 60 cm wide were wedged between the balsa logs and used as centre-boards.

The Voyage.

The crew's first sight of land was the atoll of Puka-Puka on July 30. On August 4, the 97th day after departure, Kon-Tiki reached the Angatau atoll. The crew made brief contact with the inhabitants

Maritime History

The Kon-Tiki at Oslo Museum


Communication. The expedition carried an amateur radio station operated by former World War II Norwegian Resistance radio operators who

m a i n t a i n e d r e g u l a r communication with a number of American, Canadian, and South American stations that relayed Kon Tiki's status to the N o r w e g i a n E m b a s s y i n Washington, D.C. Kon Tiki's transmitters were powered by batteries and a hand-cranked generator and operated in the HF bands. They also carried a V H F t r a n s m i t t e r f o r communicating with aircraft and a hand-cranked survival radio for 500 and 8280 kHz.

of Angatau Island, but were unable to land safely. Calculations made by Heyerdahl before the trip had indicated that 97 days was the minimum amount of time required to reach the Tuamotu islands, so the encounter with Angatau showed that they had made good time.

On August 7, the voyage came to an end when the raft struck a reef and was eventually beached on an uninhabited islet off Raroia atoll in the Tuamotu group. The team had travelled a distance of around 6,980 km (3,770 nm) in 101 days, at an average speed of 1.5 knots

After spending a few days alone on the tiny islet, the crew was greeted by men from a village on a nearby island who arrived in canoes, having seen washed-up flotsam from the raft. The crew were taken back to the native village, where they were feted with traditional dances and other festivities. Finally the crew were taken off Raroia to Tahiti by the French schooner Tamara, with the salvaged Kon-Tiki in tow.

Supplies. Kon-Tiki carried 1,040 litres of drinking water in 56 water cans, as well as a

number of sealed bamboo rods. The purpose stated by Heyerdahl for carrying modern and ancient containers was to test the effectiveness of ancient water storage. For food Kon-Tiki carried coconuts, sweet potatoes, bottle gourds and other assorted fruit and roots. The U.S. Army provided field rations, tinned food and survival equipment. They also caught plenty of fish, particularly flying fish, "dolphin fish", yellowfin tuna, and sharks.

Heyerdahl believed that the original inhabitants of Easter Island were migrants from Peru. He argued that the monumental s t a t u e s k n o w n a s m o a i resembled sculptures more typical of pre-Columbian Peru

than any Polynesian designs. He believed that the Easter Island myth of a power struggle between two peoples called the Hanau epe and Hanau momoko was a memory of conflicts between the original inhabitants of the island and a later wave of Native Americans from the Northwest coast, eventually leading to the annihilation of the Hanau epe and the destruction of the island's culture and once-prosperous economy.

Ref: Wikipedia

Cdr Mukund Yeolekar is Editor Seagull

Front view of Kon-Tiki

Maritime History


Letter from LondonBy Paul Ridgway FRGS FRIN

The Royal Navy's second Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carrier was commissioned into the Fleet on 10 December 2019. HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, as the ship's Lady Sponsor, alongside

HRH , presided over the The Prince of Walesceremony at HM Naval Base Portsmouth to a gathering of the ship's company with hundreds of guests from industry, the Allies, friends and families. is marginally larger than Prince of Wales her sister and so is now the Queen Elizabeth largest ship in the Royal Navy.

'Homecomings are always a special occasion, but to be returning to Portsmouth, with HMS Prince of Wales welcoming us home makes this a particularly special occasion.'

Her escorts and ship's flights also returned to respective home bases.

HMS Queen Elizabeth comes home.

Cmde Steve Moorhouse her CO said:

HMS Queen Elizabeth returned to Portsmouth on 4 December after an impressive deployment to the United States. The aircraft carrier spent three months off the east coast, carrying out operational tests with UK F-35 Lightning jets.

Captain Darren Houston CO of Prince of Wales read the commissioning warrant to the ship's company and guests gathered in the warship's hangar which will soon house F-35 jets and helicopters. Among those present were the First Sea Lord , Admira l Tony Radakin , the Ambassadors of France and the USA, and the commander of the US Sixth Fleet, Vice-Admiral Lisa Franchetti.

The General Election of 12 December 2019

Commissioning of HMS Prince of Wales

Results were published in the Press by midnight the following day and showed: Conservative 365

Letter from London

HMS Prince of Wales sailed into her homeport of Portsmouth for the first time on 10 December marking a significant milestone in the Royal Navy’s aircraft carrier history. MoD Crown Copyright 2019 ©


A bill to take the UK out of the EU was passed in the House of Commons on 20 December as the House rose for the Christmas recess to return early in January for the committee stage and debate by the House of Lords before it became law and the nation left at the end the month as talks began with Brussels on a trade agreement, a process expected to last much of the year.

seats, a gain of 49; Labour 202 seats, a loss of 60. Liberal Democrats 11 seats, a loss of 2; Scottish Nationalist Party 48 seats, a gain of 13 Others (Northern Ireland parties + Greens) 24. Total 650 seats. Overall Conservative majority of 80 seats.

Gough Island, in the middle of the South Atlantic, needs urgent help. It has been reported that well over two million seabird chicks are lost every year, pushing some species towards extinction. Chicks are killed by an invasive non-native species of house mouse that was introduced to Gough by humans in the 19 century.

th

Gough Island and the mouse terrorNATO Change of Command

Vice-Admiral Keith Blount is Commander of NATO Allied Maritime Command, known as MARCOM, based at Northwood, NW London.

'The UK shipping industry employs over 180,000 people and is the backbone of communities across the country. We are at a crucial time in our history and industry and government need to work together to tackle climate change, invest in skills and training and promote trade with our close neighbours and partners across the globe to ensure economic growth and prosperity.'

Keeping up with Forces' mail

On 16 December in a ceremony held at the Taranto Naval Base in Italy, command of Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2) was transferred to Rear Admiral Paolo Fantoni of the Italian Navy on 16 December. The outgoing commander, Canada's Commodore Josée Kurtz, had commanded the group for a six-month planned rotation which began in June, 2019.

Now the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and the Tristan da Cunha Government have developed an ambitious programme of conservation action. In 2020 rodenticide bait will be spread across Gough Island, eradicating the mice and restoring Gough to its natural state. This action will prevent the deaths of defenceless

In total 14 warships were at sea from Type 45 Destroyer HMS Defender and Type 23 Frigate HMS Montrose in the Gulf to survey ship HMS Enterprise in the Pacific. Since 1969 the UK has had a submarine on patrol for every minute of every day, providing the UK's nuclear deterrent and Christmas was no different. In the South Atlantic, over 1,000 personnel are stationed in the Falkland Islands. Whilst in the Caribbean, RFA Mounts Bay recently on alert over the hurricane season remained overseas.

Shortly before Christmas shore side postal services worked hard to keep up with Festive demand and to ensure that the nation's sailors, soldiers and airmen were well supplied with mail.

Over the last six months, SNMG2 consisted of between seven and twelve warships, divided into two task units, and patrolled the length and breadth of the Mediterranean and Black Seas several times over. SNMG2 ships provide NATO with a constant presence to assure Allies and deter any potential aggressors; they supported

Operation Sea Guardian, monitoring NATO's sea lanes and contributing to maritime security; they monitored the migration crises in the Aegean Sea; and they routinely trained with Allies and Partners, including participation in six large multinational exercises and numerous individual training opportunities, enhancing Alliance interoperability.

For a reflection UK Chamber of Shipping Chief Executive Bob Sanguinetti said: 'We congratulate the Prime Minister on his election victory and look forward to working with him and his ministers to ensure we continue to have a world class shipping and maritime sector.

Letter from London


Paul Ridgway FRGS FRIN is IMF's Correspondent in London

Author, Ron Neish, also a naval architect, is a proud shipbuilder who is actively i n v o l v e d i n t h e shipbuilding industry in a design and consultancy b a s i s a n d h e r e h e

emphasises the almost forgotten part played by Leith in the UK's maritime past. A valuable history of the ships built at Leith from around 1850 until the end of the First World War is provided detailing the yards and the famous ships they constructed, accompanied by tales of adventure and new trades.

Safety for fishermenA new funding scheme supporting purchase of life-saving safety equipment for fishermen was announced at the end of December. Vessel owners can claim back £200 per item towards the cost of buying personal flotation devices (PFDs) with integrated personal locater beacons (PLBs) for their crew by applying to the industry authority Seafish.

The new UK-wide funding scheme, which is being delivered by Seafish in co-operation with the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) and Trinity House, is open to owners of active UK-registered commercial fishing vessels who have not previously received support to purchase PLBs from elsewhere. They may potentially claim up to 50% of the cost of this life-saving equipment.

A new shipbuilding title.

chicks year after year, halting decline and allowing populations to bounce back.

Leith-Built Ships: Volume 1 They once were shipbuilders, by R O Neish has been published by Whittles Publishing Ltd, Dunbeath, Caithness, KW6 6EG, Scotland. This is a softback of 144

pages with more than 30 photographs and drawings and is priced at £16.99. (ISBN 978 184995 443 3). Here is the first in a series published by Whittles and r ecoun t s Le i th ' s r i ch mar i t ime h i s to ry and features the shipyards that eventually became the Henry Robb Shipyard including: S&H Morton, Ramage & Ferguson, Cran & S o m e r v i l l e a n d Hawthorns & Co.

' one of the Gough is described by UNESCO as “most pristine environments left on earth”. It is home to particularly spectacular and unique species, such as the Critically Endangered Tristan albatross, near endemic Atlantic petrels and the Gough bunting, a species with only around 500 breeding pairs and found on this 65sq km island alone. Yet even here, the impact of humans is ever more visible: invasive non-native mice, introduced some 200 years ago by sealers, are now ravaging these seabird populations.'

Letter from London

Albatross of Gough Island


Letter from CanadaCdr. M S Randhawa I.N. (Retd.)

1. Canada’s 2nd Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS) launched

Canada's second Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS), the future HMCS , was Margaret Brookesuccessfully launched in Halifax, N.S. in mid November, 2019. An important milestone in the construction of the Royal Canadian Navy's (RCN) future fleet, the launch marked the first time the ship was put in water. The ship will be berthed alongside the Halifax Shipyard until its remaining construction work is completed. The ship is expected to be in full service in 2021. Designated the Harry DeWolf-class, these ships were designed with a thick and robust hull that will allow them to operate in up to 120 cm of first-year sea ice.

Canada's First Joint Support Ship (JSS) “GRAND-BLOCKING” milestone achieved

A significant JSS milestone was achieved at Vancouver Shipyards with the first assembly of what is termed a “ ”. Grand-Block

2. Sustaining Maritime Fleet o f N e x t G e n e r a t i o n Warships – the Canadian Surface Combatants (CSC) – ETA 2025-45

The Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) Project is by far the most complex and costly military procurement ever undertaken by the Government of Canada. Building and outfitting the new warship fleet is estimated to cost between 56 and 60 billion dollars. The project is currently in the Definition Phase and the first of the class is expected to arrive in the mid-2020s, with a new warship expected to launch at regular intervals until the full fleet is built in the 2040s.

Optimizing the sustainment of what will be the main component of Canada's maritime combat

Over the winter, another nine grand-blocks are planned for assembly. This first JSS will be delivered to the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in

2023 as HMCS Protecteur where, as part of the RCN's future fleet, she will provide forward advanced logistic suppor t in a l l mar i t ime theaters of operation.

While 30 of 126 JSS blocks are currently under construction, a is achieved when Grand-Blockfour blocks, in this case comprising over 160 tons of steel, are consolidated and welded together. Such modern fabrication techniques require precise measurements and high quality welding.

The future HMCS Margaret Brooke in the water (Credit: MCpl Manuela Berger, Trinity FIS)

Grand-Block

Letter from Canada


is IMF’s correspondent in Toronto, Canada

Cdr M S Randhawa

Homecoming: Time To Catch-Up With Waiting Families.

The Honourable Harjit Singh Sajjan, Minister of National Defence, Canada, expressed his pride in “Commodore Kurtz and all of the sailors under her Command for the work they have done,” and recalled that Canada, as a founding member, “has a long history of meaningful contribution NATO.” Commodore Kurtz, the first female to command Standing NATO Maritime Group in NATO's history, had, at any given time, 1355 NATO

personnel under her command and participated in six exercises, conducted 23 port visits, and spent 121 days at sea.

SNMG2 is one of four high-readiness standing maritime forces that provide NATO with a constant presence, monitoring the sea lanes and approaches, and providing a capability to respond to contingencies.

Canada transfers command of Standing NATO Maritime Group Two

Commodore Josée Kurtz of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), transferred command of Standing NATO Maritime Group Two (SNMG2) to Rear Admiral Paolo Fantoni of the Italian Navy, during a ceremony at the Taranto Naval Base in Italy, on December 16, 2019. This deployment represents Canada's contribution to regional maritime security in support of NATO assurance measures in the Mediterranean and Black Sea region.

Does a Ship and its Crew return home for the Holiday Season? … … “Not Always!” Though Commodore Kurtz has since hauled down her flag from the erstwhile flagship – the Her Majesty's Canadian Ship (HMCS) Halifax – the ship r e m a i n s d e p l o y e d o n O p e r a t i o n REASSURANCE as part of NATO assurance and deterrence measures in the Mediterranean region, where the ship and crew continued to deploy through the holiday season, extending into the new year. However, when a ship returns after such prolonged deployments, it is traditionally accorded a warm welcome, here in Canada, (as is customary in India as well as in most maritime countries).

power for the next half-century is an enormous task. The project is using the Sustainment Business Case Analysis (SBCA) process to develop the sustainment solution.

Artist's rendering of future Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC), a Class based on

BAE's Type 26 design (also known as Global Combat Ship) that'll require to be

sustained for the next 50 years.

Vice Admiral Hervé Bléjean, Deputy Commander Allied Maritime Command (centre), presides over the

Change of Command Ceremony of Standing NATO Maritime Group Two, between

Commodore Josée Kurtz, Royal Canadian Navy (left), and Rear Admiral Paolo Fantoni, Italian Navy,

at the Taranto Naval Base, Italy, 16 December, 2019.


Letter from Canada

Cmde Ajay Chitnis is Vice President IMF

Capt Anand Dixit then outlined his plans for the future and spoke of the urgent need to augment the financial position of the IMF, expand its membership, find new sponsors and ensure more attention is given to the International Coastal Cleanup. The meeting came to an end and with that the 26-year tenure of Cmde Rajan Vir as the Founder President of IMF. All the Trustees present wished Capt Anand Dixit the very best in all his endeavours as the President and assured him of continued support.

It was time to hand over the reins, and Cmde Rajan Vir did it with a bouquet. The moment was captured by Naina Vir Delvis.

Coming back to the meeting, the Trustees unanimously passed the resolution reproduced below. This was read in two parts as shown:

By Cmde Rajan Vir- resolved at the IMF trustees meeting held on 07 January 2020 that Capt AC Dixit, President Designate, will take the helm of Indian Maritime Foundation (IMF) and the Society of Indian Mar i t ime Ar t i s t s (S IMA) as President from Commodore Vir, founder president of IMFand SIMA,

with effect from 07 January, 2020. The Annual Trustees meeting was held on the 7th of January 2020, at the residence of Cmde Rajan Vir. All Trustees were present with the exception of Capt RN Mishra, who was granted leave of absence. Cmde Vir reviewed the year gone by and outlined the activities undertaken therein. He expressed satisfaction at the way in which all the events were conducted and appreciated the efforts put in by all concerned. He also reviewed the financial position of the Foundation and stated that it was in a healthy condition.

The IMF had recently celebrated its 26th Anniversary, and for all these long years, Cmde Rajan Vir had been at the helm relentlessly pursuing the goals set and constantly striving to make IMF stronger and more meaningful. To steer such an organization, set up by a motley crew of Retired Mariners (all above 60), on a steady course, requires acumen and leadership skills of a very high order. That is what Rajan provided in his 26 years as the Founder President of the IMF. It would require a Tome to record his tenure and thus no attempt is being made here, just suffice to say that his baby – the IMF, has grown into an institution of repute, respected and recognized widely.

By Captain Anand Dixit- Commodore R Vir will from that date be designated as President Emeritus, IMF and SIMA for life, to function in an advisory role as and when called upon by the president IMF or the trustees. Commodore Vir will continue to function as managing trustee of IMF and SIMA for one year until 07 January 2021, and thereafter, as decided by the trustees.

Change of Comanad At IMFCmde Ajay Chitnis

Events


Trustees of IMF

thIMF's 26 Anniversary

Lecture on China's Maritime StrategyCapt Sunand Kanetkar (Retd)

China is investing heavily, in building its maritime assets. With an eye on achieving adequate logistic support overseas, it coined the term (BRI). The BRI is Belt and Road Initiativeaimed at achieving two ends. Firstly, that China is a (almost 100%) net importer for food grains and its energy requirements, and needs to safeguard this aspect. Secondly, it needs logistic bases in Asia, Middle East and Africa, to support its maritime ambitions. The ̀ road' initiative is a

The IMF celebrated its 26 anniversary with th

traditional pomp and gaiety on 05 Jan 2020 at Hotel Central Park in Pune. The chief guest was Vice Admiral AK Chawla, Flag Officer Commanding -in -Chief, Southern Naval Command. A host of luminaries from the Navy, Merchant Marine, Army, and others graced the occasion as honored guests. The proceedings began with the traditional lighting of lamp followed by the welcome address by Cmde R Vir, President IMF. Cmde Vir welcomed the Chief Guest and others present, and narrated the glorious saga of 26 years of the IMF. He dwelt at length upon the various activities taken up by the IMF in the pursuance of its goal to raise awareness of the oceans and to rekindle maritime consciousness and pride.

After Cmde Vir's welcome address, the Chief Guest Adm Chawla was invited to deliver his talk on China's Maritme Strategy The flag officer is . an expert on China, and has written extensively on China's military strategy and ambitions. He is currently writing a PhD thesis on the subject. He started, by quoting Sun Tze, the influential military strategist, from whose teachings, the Chinese have perfected the art of influencing adversaries, lulling them into a by other means,sense of complacency and then striking when least expected. This has happened all through the ages, and a phenomenon we have repeatedly witnessed in present times, as well.

In the past, China's self declared use of its PLA,was purely for defence of its territories. It first publicised its offensive posture in the mid 90s. Thereafter every `white paper' has built upon this concept. The importance of the PLA Navy, was emphasised about 15 years ago. The white papers from 2002 onwards, have repeatedly stressed on maritime dominance for becoming leading theworld power by 2049. In pursuit of this, they ramped-up their ship building activities, and started venturing into the IOR region, to demonstrate its military reach. It first entered the IOR, under the pretext of anti piracy activities in 2008, and later deployed its conventional submarines from 2011, and nuclear submarines from 2013. It now regularly deploys its surface action groups in the IOR for exercises.

Events

V Adm Chawla Lighting Lamp

V Adm Chawla Delivering Talk on China’s Maritime Strategy


secondary aspect of the BRI. The maritime `Belt' is the more important aspect of this game plan. This maritime dominance, by other means, should be a source of concern the world over, and

particularly for India. China has been investing hugely in maritime and non-maritime projects in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Africa to build its strategic interests. The countries involved in these tie-ups will have to repay China huge debts, and eventually end up handing over these projects to China, in lieu of the large debts. Sri Lanka has already handed over the strategic Hambantota port to the Chinese (on a platter), on a 99 year lease in 2017. These countries, when approached by China, as part of the BRI, did not realise the debt trap they were entering into. The Chinese companies selected to develop the infrastructure (including hydro power projects etc) had done so at astronomical costs (almost triple the world standards). Pakistan, for example, will need to pay the Chinese at least $7 to 8 bn, annually for the next few decades. This is a debt trap, from which Pakistan cannot survive. The Gwadar port in

Balochistan province, is being developed by the the Chinese solely to access the Arabian Sea for its strategic needs. It can also be used as a `cats-paw' against India. While, the world is now b e c o m i n g w i s e r o n t h e B R I , C h i n a ' s unprecedented maritime expansion would also have to slow down, as China will find it difficult to incur huge investments on maintaining its maritime assets, while attempting to build new ones.

Associate Editor Seagull

This excellent talk was very well received, and appreciated by senior veterans as well as eminent civilian personalities. Among, those who attended were Mukesh Malhotra, Atul Khanna, Lt Gen Yash Malhotra, Maj Gen Dewan, Rear Adm PD Sharma, Air Marshal Anil Trikha and a host of other dignitaries. After the lecture Cmde JJ Varma proposed the vote of thanks. This was followed by sumptuous dinner hosted by IMF, in honour of the visiting dignitaries.

Capt Sunand Kanetkar is

Audience

V Adm Chawla with Cadets of Sea Cadets Corps

IMF Council Members

Events


A National Hero Recounts His Adventure By Cmde Ajay Chitnis

Adventure

Present were members of the IMF and the NFPC, as well as Rotarians from various clubs in Pune, members of the HAM Amateur Radio Club of Pune, and other interested citizens. Also present were large number of NCC Naval Wing Cadets, Sea Cadets from the Pune unit of Sea Cadet Corps, Cadets from the Ocean Cadets Academy, and Trainees from the Tolani Maritime Institute, and students of local schools. Over 350 persons

attended the event, Commodore Rajan Vir, President IMF welcomed everyone, and Commodore Ajay Chitnis, Vice President IMF introduced Commander Abhilash Tomy. Both of them invoked the memory of Vice Admiral MP Awati, calling him the father of Ocean Sailing in India, and paid him a tribute. Cdr Tomy narrated his experiences from the very beginning, of how he got involved and what led him to volunteer to undertake this arduous voyage, which would keep him alone at sea in a 56-foot boat for nearly six

months, with no stop, and no support from shore. Through very exciting visuals – photos and video clips, he took the audience around the world giving them a feel of how the waves and winds varied from flat calm to being as high as a 7-storey buildings and speeds of over 100 kmph. He had the a u d i e n c e s p e l l b o u n d throughout his narration. He was flagged off from Mumbai

ston the 1 of November 2012 by the President of India, and also ceremonially welcomed back 151 days later by the President himself. On his return, he became the first Indian to circumnavigate the globe solo, non-stop and

thunassisted, and only the 79 person in the world to have

achieved this feat. He is also the second Asian to have achieved this feat.

He then spoke about his second attempt to circumnavigate the globe when he was the only Asian to be invited to participate in the Golden Globe Race in 2018. This was to be in boats equipped with navigation and radio aids available before 1968. His boat, the Thuriya, was built in

Commander Abhilash Tomy, Kirti Chakra, Nao Sena Medal, the first and only Indian to circumnavigate the Earth in a sailing boat, solo, non-stop, and unassisted, was in Pune at the invitation of the Indian Maritime Foundation (IMF), to relate his experiences of Sailing around

stthe Earth, in a Lecture-cum-Presentation, on 31 October 2019. The function was held at the Mahatma Phule Sanskrutik Bhavan, Wanowrie, and was co-sponsored by the Navy Foundation, Pune Chapter (NFPC).

Cdr Tomy receiving memento from cmde Rajan Vir


India, and based on a design of the boat that won the race 50 years ago, in 1968. While Tomy was in the third position in the race, a severe storm struck and his boat was severely damaged, and overturned twice, resulting in it being 'dismasted'. While trying to trim the sails, Cdr Tomy fell from the mast and suffered a grievous injury to his back, as a result of which he had to lie absolutely flat on his bunk. He was in the remotest part of the southern Indian Ocean – 2000 miles from the West Coast of Australia, and 2000 miles from

Africa. After sending out his initial message, he could not communicate further due to his injury. H i s b o a t w a s s p o t t e d b y a M a r i t i m e Reconnaissance Aircraft of the Indian Navy, which had taken off from Arkonam, near Chennai, and refueled at Mauritius. After that he was rescued by a French Fisheries Patrol Vessel, and taken to Amsterdam Island, from where an Indian Naval Ship Satpura evacuated h im to Visakhapatnam.

Cdr Abhilash Tomy received a standing ovation from the audience, and took on questions also, during which he said that he was almost fully fit and had recently done a 52-km Kayaking expedition recently. Cdr Mohan Philip, officiating President of NFPC proposed the Vote of Thanks. The function was ably sponsored by Mr. Yezdi Batliwala, council member of the IMF.

Cmde Ajay Chitnis is the Vice President of IMF and Joint Editor of Seagull

Large audience for Cdr Tomy’s lecture

Cdr Tomy with IMF Council Members

Adventure


Jr SIMA Painting CompetitionBy Capt AC Dixit

thOn a cool sunny morning of 17 November 2019 a group of bubbling children accompanied by their parents assembled at the scenic Empress Garden in Pune. The occasion was a Painting Competition 'On the Spot Seascapes' organized by Jr SIMA, a sister organization of IMF. The event was conducted by Avani Site and Deepshikha Saxena, Secretary and Jt Secretary respectively of SIMA. The attendees included besides the children and their parents office bearers of IMF. SIMA and Junior SIMA, notably Cmde Rajan Vir, Capt Anand Dixit, Mr Prateek Tandon, Secretary SIMA, Mrs Jayanti Shetty, Mr Hoshnar Kaikobad, Mrs Anita Verma, Mrs Julie Mathew and others.

The programme began with welcome address by the organizers followed by an inspiring talk by Cmde Rajan Vir, President IMF. Mr Hoshnar Kaikobad gave a demonstration of painting in which he created a beautiful night scene with a boat on the water. The demo was watched intently by the young audience and admired with expressions of ooh and aah!

Then started the main event, 'On the Spot Seascapes'. The children were divided into three age groups for the competition, 4-6 years, 7-11 years, 12-16 years. The young artists got down to the task with great seriousness. It was a pleasure to watch them expressing themselves through the medium of art. The panel of judges comprising Mrs Jayanti Shetty, Mr Hoshnar Kaikobad and Mrs Anita Verma evaluated the paintings and decided the winners in each age group.

The prizes were given away by Cmde Rajan Vir and Capt Anand

Dixit. The painting competition was followed by a Maritime Quiz programme which brought out some surprisingly good answers from the children. The day's proceedings ended with the

most awaited part, serving of refreshments which were thoroughly enjoyed by the children. It was a happy morning out for all concerned and was equally enjoyed by the children, their parents and the guests.

Capt AC Dixit is the President of IMF

Events

Painting Demonstration by Mr Hoshnar Kaikobad


KV Svalbard First ABB Azipod®-powered vessel to reach the North Pole

Technology

With its superior performance in the harshest of ice conditions, Azipod® propulsion has become an industry standard for icegoing vessels, enabling vessels to cross the Northern Sea Route independently, it is understood.

In late August 2019, Azipod® propulsion made history driving a Norwegian Coast Guard icebreaker to the North Pole. In another historical debut, KV Svalbard became the first Norwegian vessel to sail to the 'top of the world'.

KV Svalbard, built in 2001 and equipped with twin 5MW Azipod® icebreaking units, was sailing in Arctic waters as part of the international scientific expedition, Coordinated Arctic Acoustic Thermometry Experiment (CAATEX), led by a Norwegian non-profit research foundation Nansen Center*.

(For more on the expedition see here: https://www.nersc.no/news/norwegian-research-expedition-onboard-kv-svalbard-reached-north-pole)

In the words of Ottar Haugen, Commander of the Norwegian Coast Guard: 'We were able to navigate through the Arctic waters and reach the North Pole faster than we thought possible. This is a significant milestone for us and a proof that

we have a vessel in our fleet equipped with a robust propulsion system that enables operations in the harshest ice conditions – all the way to the North Pole.'

It was reported by ABB as on 23 August 2019 that the Norwegian Coast Guard vessel KV Svalbard was on an international environmental research expedition when it became the first ever Azipod®-powered ship to reach the North Pole.

The Azipod® propulsion system, where the electric drive motor is in a submerged pod outside the vessel's hull, can rotate 360 degrees to increase manoeuvrability, which is particularly crucial for vessels operating in ice.

The aim of the expedition was to place seabed sensors that would allow the scientists to monitor water temperatures in Arctic waters. Reaching the North Pole adds another dimension to the research, enabling data collection from some of the most remote parts of the Arctic Ocean.

In the report by ABB AS it was learnt that Azipod® icebreaking propulsion is capable of breaking up to 2.1 metres thick Arctic ice and has a proven ability to cut fuel consumption by up to 20% compared to traditional shaftline propulsion systems.

Edited by Paul Ridgway London

ABB has delivered electric propulsion systems to over 90 icebreakers or ice-going vessels with a propulsion power of up to 45 MW. Options for Azipod® propulsion span 1MW to 22MW, and the technology has played a key role in deve lop ing ABB's s t rong pos i t ion fo r environmentally-friendly electric propulsion.

KV Svalbard cutting ice in the Arctic


Q1. How did you get the idea of forming the IMF ?Ans. Well it was my idea, because I have served in the IN for 29 years and in the Merchant Navy for 13 years and it was during this time that I realised that both the services knew very little about each other as they lived in separate worlds. When I

asked a merchant Navy officer about a warship he could only answer that it was a Warship and nothing more about what type of ship. I was in Shipping Corporation of India from 1978 to 1991, nearly 13 years. I commanded ten merchant ships, tankers, bulk carriers, passenger ship Nancowrie plying between Andaman and Chennai and several Container ships. At that time Certificate of service in Navy was acceptable for joining Merchant Navy. I realized that we should bring the two navies together and we achieved that to some degree. I wanted to start something. I finished with Merchant Navy at the age of 60 and I though there is lot of time for me to do something. I considered Firefighting, but finally I thought why not do something in the field to which we belong. I also felt that people outside know very less about the oceans and many things are happening there unknown to people. I mentioned to my wife when we were in Darjeeling and she supported the idea. She suggested that I discuss with like-minded people. I returned and discussed with Cdr R Gulati who had a similar experience in IN and Merchant Navy. Also I met Capt Honavar who offered to bring some Merchant Navy officers. This is how I got the idea to start a venture with Naval and Merchant Naval officers. There was opposition from some people saying that there was already a Navy Foundation. But my venture endeavored to do something more that the Navy Foundation. We started meeting at the Boat Club in Pune initially. I have a 1Bed-room flat in Pune which was converted to an office and the IMF has been located in this office without payment of any rent throughout this period. We have kept on record the Minutes of the first meeting held. We decided to do something related to Maritime world. Initially we did not know what the Organisation would be called. After a lot of debating we decided to call the organization Indian Maritime Foundation and to have a journal. We decided to raise awareness of the oceans and made a mission statement – to kindle

The founder President and architect of the Indian Maritime Foundation, Commodore Rajan Vir relinquished the helm after about 26 glorious years. During his illustrious long tenure he shaped the organization with his vision, sea-mindedness and passion for maritime consciousness. He galvanized retired officers from the Navy and Merchant Marine to form a unique NGO. On the eve of his relinquishing office Capt Sunand Kanetkar and Cdr Mukund Yeolekar interviewed him and sought secrets of his success. Excerpts of the interview are given below.

Interview with Cmde Rajan Vir on Handing over the Helm of IMF

Events

Cmde Vir with Capt Kanetkar and Cdr Mukund Yeolekar


Ans. The main activity was quarterly Seagull journal. The cost of printing the issue now is Rs 55000/- plus postage, courier charges for 650 copies which is nearly 20000/- , totaling 75000/-.Fortunately we have with us a quiet and sincere officer- Capt Ravi Hajarnavis who plays Golf and has many contacts. He approached his friends who gave many adverts in Seagull. This boosted our revenue. Further Bobby Honavar went to Hong Kong and met Capt Banga and told him what we are doing in IMF. Capt Banga appreciated that and agreed to support us. We made him our Patron for life and he continues to help us financially from time to time. So this is what has kept Seagull going. We have managed to keep our head above water. It is a continuous battle. If we have to run the organization we have to forget our ego, bend our knees and ask for help, as I am doing something for my country. That is the only way people will help you. Seagull has

Ans. Well, I felt that to run an organization this organization you need funds, and the funds must start with me. I looked upon it as a new-born baby which had to be taken care of. Fortunately I was not short of funds myself and was happy to spend my funds. I was a Rotarian for many years. In Rotary it is a different culture altogether. You work, do various projects which are concerning time and money. You donate money freely for various Rotary projects. So I wanted to apply similar concept to IMF, where people will work selflessly and will spend there own money. It took some time for this to be understood in IMF. Some people started sending bills to me for certain expenditure. Some people left as they could not accept this concept. In this organisation we are selfless workers who give back something to society. I am very fortunate because I got a lot from Navy, so I wanted to give back something to Navy, Society and country. I don't have any extra personal expenses. So I have money to spare for this organization. This is the concept we have adopted – You work, give your time, spend your money and feel happy for having given back something to society.

Ans. To spread the knowledge, expertise, experience we thought we should have a journal. But there was no money. So we had to look around and met a gentleman in London, Mr Chari who was an ex-Income Tax Commissioner in Mumbai. I told him that I am starting an organization and a journal but I don't have money. People don't want to hear what you plan and going to do, but they like to hear what you have actually done, which is more acceptable when help is sought. So we had to make a start. Mr Chari asked me to meet him when he returned to Mumbai from London. He trusted me and believed that I am doing a sincere job. He took me to Mr Kotak who was in banking and also a Shipping agent. Mr Chari as Income Tax Commissioner had helped Mr Kotak earlier. So as a quid pro quo, he expected some help from Mr Kotak. Mr Kotak stated that he did not know Capt Vir but since he knew Mr Chary who said that Capt Vir wants to do something, he would help. Mr Kotak helped us with Rs 3 lakhs. This was a lot of money and gave a kick-start to our project. This is how Seagull was started. Then we started meeting once a week because I thought it was required to keep up the momentum.

maritime consciousness and pride. For this there was a need to have a journal. It took some time to decide a name. Someone suggested 'Seahorse' and other names. Finally we decided on Seagull It was decided that the organization should be registered with the Charity Commissioner in Pune. To run the Organisation it should have funds and it should be officially accepted as an NGO. The Charity Commissioner was not aware of the term 'Maritime'. When explained he thought we were fooling him because Pune was nowhere near the sea. We explained to him that being close to Mumbai was enough for our work. Hence we got registered as IMF.

Q2. What made you choose making it a Trust and an NGO ?

Q4. What was the first activity planned by IMF ?

Q3. Given that such an organisation needs to have backing and a minimum level of support to gather momentum, how did you achieve this? and what were the main hurdles ?

Events


I lay great emphasis on the young Indians and make them aware of the oceans, the marine wildlife, the importance of the marine environment, experiences of seafarers etc. The young Indian are the children who are our future, and IMF must concentrate on them.

Ans When we started of the IMF in 1993, we felt that the Society of marine artists (SIMA) would be a good idea to spread awareness of the sea through the medium of art, specially amongst children. Our rep in UK, Capt Mike Barrow, my term-mate in UK during initial training, helped us out. I said, “ I need an artist from the UK to come down”. So he arranged for Robert King from the prestigious Royal Society of Marine Artists, to come. We paid for his airfare, put him up in Yacht Club in Mumbai, and looked after him. Then we have a separate account for Seagull. Then the Ocean Savers of India (OSI), which we ran for a few years, then the MRC account which is looked after by Arnab. Then we have the Chennai account, which is separate.

Q6. Do you have any concerns regarding IMF.

Ans. Seagull is very important as is the lectures in schools and colleges. It its difficult to make people sea-minded in their 50's or 60's, much easier to make them aware in their 20's. We must make children `sea minded', to teach them about the marine environment and shift their focus from a continental India to maritime India. Both Seagull as well as the lectures in schools are important to reach out to people.

Q7. What do you feel passionate about, which you feel IMF must never lose track of or dilute it's importance ?

Q8. What are the failures, which can be re-looked at again and what is your vision of where it should go from here?Ans. There are many things that I wanted to do, but failed to do. One is to have active branches in Chennai, Mumbai and Delhi, to replicate the activities that we do here. Like the Seminars, lectures in schools and colleges, set up memorials, museums, and making new members etc. This did not happen.

been a great partnership of Navy and Merchant Navy. I thought that Naval officers are not good at fund raising but they know how to write articles and put things together. So Merchant Navy officers have been arranging funds . We have thus achieved integration of Navy and Merchant Navy officers. This gave me tremendous sense of satisfaction and happiness. Over the last 26 years it was enjoyable when we sat together and worked together on projects. It was teamwork and without any ego. I don't think there is any other Organization in India or the world where Naval and Merchant Navy officers work together. This is a matter of great satisfaction to me.

Q5. Please take us through the timeline of the various entities within IMF including the Seagull.

Ans. I would suggest that the President should be the Treasurer as well. I have been the Treasurer of IMF from Day 1 until two weeks ago when Capt Dixit took over from me. I told him to decide

whether he wants to continue. He replied that he will start with it initially and decide later. I said that for all NGOs the President should be the Treasurer in order to have good control over the funds. He should know where the funds come from and where they go. It is also his baby to raise funds and to find sponsors. Most of the sponsors for IMF were identified by Capt Hajarnavis, some Council members and by me. We went around with bended knees seeking funds.

Events


The Navy Day 2019 offered the opportunity to reflect on the situation at sea as it obtained during the Kargil conflict.

On July 26 2019, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of our glorious victory in the Kargil War. As is well known, this conflict, the most televised war in our history, was fought in the icy heights of Kargil in Kashmir from May to July 1999. This war included three independent yet joint operations by the Armed Forces — Operation Vijay by Army, Operation Safed Sagar by the Air Force and Operation Talwar by the Navy. While the contributions of the Army and the Air Force have been well documented and the extraordinary courage of many of their personnel justly celebrated, the actions by the Navy remain largely unknown, characteristic of the Navy's reputation as a silent service. The Navy Day this year offers the opportunity to reflect on the situation at sea as it obtained during this conflict.Enough has been written about the misadventure by Pakistan but it is in the nature of human affairs that foolhardy endeavours often result in an escalating spiral of violence with recklessness replacing restraint. Restraint in war is wrought by an active combination of political, diplomatic and military means. While our Political, Diplomatic and Bureaucratic apex played their part admirably in coercive diplomacy, the Indian Armed Forces, in a well-planned joint operation, were able to ensure that Pakistan would remain pinned down and not be able to expand the conflict. The Indian Navy essayed a crucial role in this regard.

The tri-service joint plan by the Indian military leadership at the time included the use of all the elements of military power. It planned to use the Air Force to target the entrenched positions of the infiltrators on the high ridges in the region and the Army artillery to not allow the intruders any rest.

Meanwhile the Navy — unencumbered by the constraint of not crossing the Line of Control — deployed proactively in full strength to signal that any expansion of conflict would result in the full might of our military being brought to bear upon Pakistan. The plan was a departure from the strategic restraint that India has generally shown against the sub-conventional provocations by Pakistan. In a recently published memoir called A Prime Minister to Remember – Memories of a Military Chief, Admiral Sushil Kumar, the Navy chief at that time, recollects that “by early June 1999 the task forces of the Indian Navy's Western fleet had swiftly deployed and seized the initiative in the North Arabian Sea”.

Operation Talwar – 1999 Kargil ConflictCmde Srikant Kesnur & Cdr Digvijaysinh Sodha

Maritime History

By keeping Pakistan in a continued state of anxiety and alarm about our intentions, by forcing it to spread its assets thin and conjoining with other services where required, the Navy played a relatively unsung but important role in determining the outcome of the conflict.

The Navy — unencumbered by the constraint of not crossing the Line of Control — deployed proactively in full strength to signal that any expansion of conflict would result in the full might of our military being brought to bear upon Pakistan.

The Naval plan, christened Operation Talwar, was a demonstration of intent and capability. All elements of the naval force were pressed into action to, first, ascertain the positions of the Pakistan Navy assets and, second, to ensure that own high value assets in the sea, Bombay High, as well as in the coastal areas, especially in Gujarat, were well protected.


This large scale deployment in the Northern Arabian Sea — at one point about 30 ships were reported in the Pakistan media as being at the doorstep of Karachi — was close enough for Pakistan to notice and feel the presence, with the possibility of their supplies being choked. This forced her Navy to shift her assets from Karachi, fearing an Indian Naval strike on the harbour. The late Vice-Admiral G.M. Hiranandani, a naval historian, writing about the war in his book Transition to Guardianship states that Pakistan naval headquarters directed their ships to “keep well clear of the Indian Navy”. Pakistan's weakness was further demonstrated when it started escorting its oil tankers from the Persian Gulf along the Makaran coast. Elsewhere in his book, Sushil Kumar brings out that Pakistan Navy Headquarters “signalled their warships to remain in harbour”.

The escort operations revealed that blockade of Karachi and interruption of oil supply from the Persian Gulf were serious vulnerabilities for Pakistan requiring an operational and strategic pause. This, in turn, gave the Army and Air Force the time and leeway to press home their advantage and turn the initial setback into a memorable

victory. It has been chronicled that Pakistani PM Nawaz Sharif indicated after the conflict that had the Indian Navy blockaded Karachi, Pakistan had fuel supplies only for six days of conventional combat.

Rear Admiral S.Y. Shrikhande, a retired Navy officer and eminent strategic analyst, who was part of the Operation as the commander of INS Delhi in a recent article on the subject opines that “when seen in an aggregated sense, bold deployment and demonstrated readiness with adequate signalling of resolve had considerable effect on the Kargil conflict”.

There were other places too where the Navy chipped in. The Navy's squadron of aircraft operated along the Line of Control in support of land forces; specialist hydrography teams were conjoined with the Army's artillery batteries to pinpoint locations and Navy's special forces operated in tandem with their counterparts of

The idea was to provide no opportunity to Pakistan to claim success and to ensure that if Pakistan dared to think of expanding the battle from the limited Kargil sector, the Navy would open another front in the South. The operation involved the largest ever deployment of combatant ships in the Arabian Sea. The Western Fleet, which by itself was enough to tackle the Pakistan Navy, was additionally augmented by assets from the Eastern Fleet. As India progressively involved its naval aviation, submarine, amphibious and Coast Guard assets and conducted high tempo operations including Electronic Warfare exercises, the signal was clear. Further, when the Pakistani authorities started bandying about the 'N word', India responded by moving ships closer to Pakistan coast, a clear indication that we would not yield to the nuclear blackmail.

This war also involved very astute use of information warfare by the Indian Armed Forces. This was the first time that daily joint media briefings were undertaken by senior officers from all the three services in New Delhi. The aim was to undertake messaging, for Indian citizens, for neutral observers and most of all for the antagonist, about the intent and the preparedness of the Indian Armed Forces. Newspaper articles, photographs and television became important tools of information war. For example, photographs of fully armed and ready Eastern Fleet ships in Kochi on their way to the western theatre were reproduced in international media and taken note of in the concerned circles.

By keeping Pakistan in a continued state of anxiety and alarm about our intentions, by forcing it to spread its assets thin and by conjoining with the other two services where required, one may affirm that the Navy's role in the Kargil war was silent, understated but significant.

Maritime History


As Sushil Kumar states, “the overwhelming superiority of our navy had a sobering effect on Pakistan”. Both national and international media took note of these developments.

other services. The Navy also intercepted and arrested a North Korean ship that was carrying missile components to Pakistan and aiding their war effort.

While Jane's International Weekly headlined that “Indian Navy muscle hastened end to border fight” the Hindustan Times reported that “Alert navy helped pin down Pakistan to Kargil”.

Admiral Sushil Kumar's book also brings out the visionary role played by Prime Minster A.B. Vajpayee and others in the political apex which percolated down to all echelons whereby all the three services and other agencies operated in a cohesive and coordinated manner during the crisis. The admiral highlights that the instinctive understanding of the Maritime issues displayed by the then Prime Minister, defence minister George Fernandes and external affairs minister Jaswant Singh resulted in clear and unambiguous rules of engagement (ROE) for the Forces at Sea from the precautionary stage onwards.

Admiral Sushil Kumar passed away in the early hours of November 27, 2019. This article is as much a tribute to his leadership as it is a chronicle of the Navy in the Kargil war.

Cmde Srikant Kesnur and Cdr Digvijaysinh Sodha are serving Navy officers with an

interest in maritime and naval history. The views expressed here are personal.

Courtesy : Asian Age Delhi, 04 Dec2019

Over the last 20 years this war has been studied for various reasons — on managing localised conflict, on information operations, on the many dimensions of conventional conflict between two nuclear power states. Perhaps, it is also worth studying for the role that maritime forces can play in contributing to air-land campaigns and managing continental conflicts and whether strategic advantages at sea can be used to offset any disadvantages or constraints on land. As security analyst Iskandar Rehman in his essay in the book The Rise of Indian Navy (Ed Harsh Pant) perspicaciously says, “The idea that the Indian Navy can be highly effective as a game changing flanking force is one which has gained credence since the Navy's 'silent' Kargil victory.”

Maritime History


After concerns raised by several research bodies in India and abroad regarding the impact of shipping noise on the health of marine mammals, the Ministry of shipping said the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) — an international regulatory body— has decided to implement noise abatement measures.

Noise from shipping traffic in the Arabian Sea is much louder than the Bay of Bengal, a latest study highlighting the harm that noise pollution poses to marine mammals has found.

The Maritime Research Centre (MRC), Pune, under the Foundation for Underwater Domain Awareness, a non-government organisation working on marine ecosystem concerns due to acoustic habitat degradation, recently published

its study using spatial noise mapping in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and outlined its results in the form of heat maps showing shipping traffic and noise coming from them. Similar noise data using satellite maps has been published by international studies between Seattle, USA and Vancouver, Canada where noise levels touched peak levels of 210 dB due to shipping traffic.

The Indian Ocean Region (IOR), which includes Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and the southern Indian Ocean, will soon have standards to ensure noise pollution is curtailed at sea.

“Marine traffic noise has risen. As shipping is on international waters, it does not come only under the jurisdiction of the Indian government,” said S Barik, chief surveyor and additional director general, ministry of shipping. “There are many other countries and stakeholders involved that met with IMO over the past year, and a decision has been taken to control noise pollution due to shipping traffic across IOR for protection of marine mammals. IMO will publish the standards soon.”

Between 2014 and 2019, peak decibel (dB) levels in the Arabian Sea ranged between 190 dB and 210 dB while Bay of Bengal witnessed 170 to 190 dB with isolated areas witnessing peak levels at 200 dB. Noise levels more than 120 dB cause discomfort to marine mammals, more than 170 dB causes injury (internal injuries, bleeding and hemorrhages), and beyond 200 dB can lead to instant death, the study said.

The study corroborates the stranding of a 40-foot Blue Whale and a 50-foot Bryde's whale along the Maharashtra coast in 2016 and 2017, and states that noise from ships led to disorientation in both marine mammals and to move towards the coast, which ultimately led to their stranding. According to the Maharashtra mangrove cell, there have been 143 reported marine mammal deaths along the Mumbai Metropolitan Region from 2015 to 2019 (October). In 2019, however, there have only been six reported cases. Arnab Das, author of the study, former commander in the Indian Navy and director of the Maritime Research Centre, said, “Intense noise such as air gun blasts that ricochet of the seafloor, the sound of a ship's propeller, engine noise, horn blast from a bulk carrier ship etc., all drown out animal sounds or interfere with frequency (sonar waves) in their attempt to communicate with each other causing hearing loss or injury.”

While the IOR (Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean) represents 20% of the world's ocean area, the Indian National Ship-owners' Association estimates that navy ships, vessels deployed for security purposes, seaborne trade, including regular export-import goods, dry cargo, petroleum products, gas load, and crude oil, all accounted for 35,383 million tonnes (mt) in 2019. The figure stood at 5,000 mt in 1970, and steadily increased to 20,000mt in 2014 and 27,500 mt in 2017, according to United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. Das pointed out two major reasons for high noise in Arabian Sea.

New Guidelines To Ship Out Noise From The Indian Ocean Region

Marine Environment


“The first is due to shipping being directly related to economic growth and secondly anti-Piracy measures resul t ing in h igher deployment of naval vessels combined with bunching of shipping traffic witnessed over the past six years,” he said. “Policy measures are required for marine spatial planning to have equitable distribution of maritime growth across the region.”

Dr V Kripa, principal scientist and head, fishery environment management division, Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute said, “We need more research to ascertain the exact health impact of shipping noise on marine life. Studies are still in their preliminary stages.”

Courtesy : Hindustan Times 23 Dec2019

Marine mammals have different frequency bands for multiple functions such as navigation, communication, foraging, finding mates and avoiding predators. Eg. T h e B l u e w h a l e u s e s 3 0 0 K H z t o communicate , whi le dolphins and porpoises use 150 KHz.

Frequency and speed of sound play a huge role in degrading marine mammal habitat as sound travels much faster in water(1500 met/sec) than in air(335 met/sec).

Movement of ships propagates noise below 1 Khz.


Marine Environment

International Coastal Clean-upBy Cmde PK Malhotra

The IMF's ambit of concern is wide ranging; and most importantly, the protection of our marine environment, in which we have focused our attention extensively during the past seventeen years. In that respect the IMF is one of the miniscule number of bodies in India which speak out vigorously about the alarming plight of the health of the oceans, caused mostly by human intervention.

The millions of tons of plastic swirling around the world's oceans have garnered a lot of media attention recently. But plastic pollution arguably poses a bigger threat to the plants and animals – including humans – who are based on land. Very little of the plastic we discard everyday is recycled or incinerated in waste-to-energy facilities. Much of it ends up in landfills, where it may take up to 1,000 years to decompose, leaching potentially toxic substances into the soil and water. Researchers are warning that the impact of micro plastics in soils, sediments and freshwater could have a long-term negative effect on such ecosystems. They say terrestrial micro plastic pollution is much higher than marine micro plastic pollution – estimated at four to 23 times higher, depending on the environment.

To the casual observer, the oceans might seem homogenous, a vast expanse of water stretching

endlessly across the globe. From the poles to the tropics they contain almost endless variety, posing challenges to life in some places while in others offering it tremendous opportunities to flourish and thrive. Our world faces many complex challenges when it comes to a clean and healthy ocean, but one problem which is simple to understand is Trash. Ocean trash compromises the health of people, ocean wildlife and business that depend on healthy oceans.

Marine Environment

River clean-up in Punjab


“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”...

As a Member of both ICC and the Indian Marit ime Foundation (IMF) this year 's programme was sponsored by RCPC, inspired by Commodore Rajan Vir, President IMF, to help not only marine ecology but also the amazing number of lakes, ponds and streams; that need our attention. A number of Organization, schools, NGOs took part in this noble cause. IMF in collaboration with ICC started a campaign in 2003, to motivate and educate our citizens about the importance of clean and plastic free environment. Although the beginning was made with river bank clean-up at Pune; we are pursuing

regular cleanup of beaches and water bodies in the hinterland.

Think again...... The plight of Albatross birds on Midway Island, in the North Pacific Ocean, due to plastic, 2000 miles from the nearest continent. The island is littered in plastic, which the inhabiting albatross population ingests, causing a shocking and painful death.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpDGnq46tfo

Cmde PK Malhotra is Council Member of IMF and ICC Coordinator

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JZnkXQ1fLk

Last year's cleanup marked the 33rd Anniversary of the ICC. Ocean Conservancy, Washington DC recognized the dedicated efforts and enthusiasm of all by issuing Certificates.

In partnership with the Ocean Conservancy (TOC), a well known Washington DC based NGO working for protection of marine environment, the IMF has been conducting and coordinating clean-ups in India and beach clean-ups on the East and the West coasts. These are under the aegis of the International Coastal Cleanup (ICC), a global program of TOC. Beach clean-ups, and collecting litter from the banks of inland water bodies, are carried out globally by volunteers in nearly 100 countries, on the third Saturday of September every year. It is the largest volunteer program in the world, with nearly half a million people participating. In India, volunteers, from numerous schools, colleges, enterprises, banks and NGOs, conduct clean-ups and collect litter at nearly 100 sites every year.

IMF and ICC are encouraging a campaign for a healthy Ocean ecosystem, integral and intrinsic to our policy; which encompasses different water bodies apart from the ocean. It includes cleaning river banks, lake shores, ponds and even canals.

Do you think that just dumping a cap from a cold drink bottle cannot do that much harm, it is only one cap after all....Do you think that only the

populated areas of earth are affected by the throw away and dump it norms of modern culture.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1P9syq3f6hQ

Think that you are not contributing to the damage of mother earth ? Think again... truly touching videos; watch them and decide for yourself....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IA9O9YUbQew

River clean-up in Pune, Dec 19

Girls of Sea Cadet Corps in action


Marine Environment

125 Years of Kiel CanalPeter Neunhäuser

125 years ago, in July 1895, Kaiser Wilhelm II opened the canal between Kiel and Brunsbüttel. It connects the North Sea with the Baltic Sea and is the most frequented artificial waterway for seagoing vessels. 98 km long, 11 m deep, it saves the journey through Skagerrak and Kattegat. In 2018, 30,000 ships passed through it. For

comparison: for the Suez Canal, the annual number of ships passing through the canal was about 17,500, for the Panama Canal 14,300 ships.The first connection between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea for seagoing vessels was opened in 1784 as the In 1864, Schleswig-Holstein Canal. the Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismarck gave the order to establish a connection between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, which enabled the German fleet to "be able to pass through the Channel without being under Danish cannon at any time". Thus the primarily military strategic intention was clear. Bismarck was able to convince Kaiser Wilhelm I to build the canal.

After the German Reichstag had approved a law on the construction of the canal in 1986, Emperor Wilhelm I laid the foundation stone in Kiel on 3 July 1887. Up to 89,000 workers moved about 80 million cubic metres of soil. On 20 June 1895, after 8 years of construction, the canal was opened by Kaiser Wilhelm II and named "Kaiser-

W i l h e l m - K a n a l " a f t e r h i s grandfather.

Changing water levels caused by ebb and flow in the North Sea (Brunsbüttel/Lower Elbe) or wind in the Baltic Sea (Kiel-Holtenau/Kieler Förde) are controlled by at locksboth ends.

Eight roads and four railway lines cross the canal on a total of ten bridges, one passenger ferry and thirteen vehicle , enabling ferriestransport to the other side, and near Rendsburg there has been a road tunnel and a pedestrian tunnel since 1961. Well known is the railway high bridge in Rendsburg with the suspension ferry hanging below. All bridges have the same clearance height of 42 metres for shipping,

because the canal was designed for the German class liner ships of the Imperial Navy during construction.

Although the canal was extended for the first time between 1907 and 1914, after the modernization of the German war fleet around 1900 (German-British Naval Race, Tirpitz Plan) some of the now built large combat ships of the Imperial Navy could not navigate the canal anymore due to their size.

On October 29, 1938, Winston S. Churchill advised that the canal should be made impassable

Shipping


Peter Neunhäuser is IMF's

Since 1965 the canal has been extended for the second time. According to the newspaper "Kieler Nachrichten" of 18.12.2019, the expansion of the eastern part of the canal is now to begin in January 2020. A total of about €280 million will be invested over the next 10 years on an 18 km long section. As a result, the minimum bottom width will be extended from the previous 44 m to 70 m and narrow curves will be flattened. In future, larger ships may also pass each other in the eastern section of the route. This removes the last bottleneck in the channel.

the North Sea to the Royal Navy in case of war. He knew that the Baltic Sea was of strategic importance for Germany and therefore the majority of the Kriegsmarine was stationed there. Nevertheless, the canal remained navigable throughout the Second World War. German warships armed with heavy anti-aircraft guns in the Channel posed a considerable risk to attacking enemy aircraft.

In 1948, at the request of the Allies, the Kaiser-Wilhelm Canal was renamed “Nord-Ostsee-Kanal”, as it had already been called during the planning and construction phase; in international traffic it is still called the "Kiel Canal". The paved service road along the canal is open to

pedestrians and cyclists and allows comfortable cycling tours on both sides almost over the full length in close proximity to the ships - a popular tourist attraction. Crossing over to the other side of the canal with one of the numerous ferries is free of charge. Kaiser Wilhelm had already ordered this in an order to achieve greater acceptance among the population, as the artificial waterway cuts through older traffic routes. This order is still valid today after 125 years !

For the steadily growing ships and the increase in canal passages, the current state of the Kiel Canal represents a bottleneck. In addition to improving bends and passing points on the eastern section, it is therefore planned to deepen the canal along its entire length, but this will not take place before the completion of the upgrading work on the eastern section. A large proportion of the vessels using the canal are feeder traffic coming from the Baltic Sea region to ports in the southern North Sea (e.g. Rotterdam) or Hamburg, where their cargo is assembled into trans ocean passages. The largest ship passing through the canal in terms of dimensions up to that point was the bulk carrier "Aeolian Vision" in 2012, with a

length of 229 m, a width of 32 m and a draught of 7.2 m with a gross tonnage of 43,767. In addition, cruise ships are increasingly using the canal, combining visits to the Baltic ports with voyages to England and Scandinavia, with Kiel having gained importance as a cruise destination.

The maximum speed for all ships is 15 km/h (8.1 kn), for ships with a draught of more than 8.5 metres 12 km/h (6.5 kn). A trip through the channel takes 7 to 9 hours.Any large vessel passing through the Kiel Canal is obliged to take a canal pilot.

Correspondent in Berlin, Germany

German Light cruiser SMS Dresden passing through the Kiel Canal under the Levensau High Bridge 1909


Shipping

“We have to live and respect the environment because the environment is the nest of life, and without it nobody in Palau can survive,” President Tommy Remengesau said. Palau is renowned for its marine life and is regarded as one of the world's best diving destinations, but the government is concerned its popularity is coming at a cost. Remengesau said there was scientific evidence that the chemicals found in most sunscreens were toxic to corals, even in minute doses.

With Palau's popular dive sites regularly packed with tourists there were concerns a build-up of these chemicals would irreparably harm the reefs. From New Year's day, any reef-toxic sunscreen imported or sold in Palau will be confiscated and the owner will be fined US$1,000. AFPFrom the Times of India 02 Jan2020

Palau's pioneering ban on “reef-toxic” sunscreens took effect on 01 Jan 2020 as the Pacific island nation introduced strict environmental measures that also include one of the world's largest marine sanctuaries.

Chinese scientists test underwater drone Sea-whale 2000, designed for South China Sea.

Palau 1 nation to ban 'Reef-toxic' Sunscreens. st

“Sea-Whale 2000's development is to meet the long-term deep-sea mobile survey needs in the South China Sea,” said an announcement by the programme team, led by Dr Huang Yan of the Chinese Academy of Sciences' robotics institute in the northeastern Liaoning province. The drone is able to run “a long-endurance mission for weeks with one launch and can accomplish multiple working mode missions”, they said. They declined to elaborate on why China is building the drone for the South China Sea.

The ships in question in attacks on 23 Dec were 105,000 DWT crude oil tanker Bamzi and dry bulk carrier Trust Star. Bamzi loaded from Basrah in Iraq in November and was headed for Qingdao in China, according to Bloomberg tanker tracking data. Trust Star sailed from Gothenburg in Sweden in November and was headed for Huanghua in China, according to the data.

Singapore Strait: Five Pirate Attacks in Four Days. Pirates attacked five ships over four days in one of the world's busiest shipping channels, including two separate attempts on Monday, the Straits Times reported. Just after midnight on 23 Dec19, pirates attacked a crude oil tanker in the Singapore Strait. Within two hours of that, there was another attack on a dry bulk carrier. They tied up crew members in both incidents but failed to rob the ships as alarms were triggered on both occasions, the newspaper reported late on Monday.

Navy tests drone designed for South China Sea, Paracel Islands

The torpedo-shaped drone, which is about three metres long and weighs 200kg (441lbs), is equipped with artificial intelligence technology

and a wide range of sensors to detect temperature, salinity, current, trace chemicals, underwater visibility and biological activity. It can dive 2,000 metres below the surface and cruise at speeds of up to 1.2 metres per second.

Carnival Cruise Ships Collide in Mexico. Two

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as:

China has developed a long-range underwater drone designed to extend the range of its activities in the South China Sea. The autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) Sea-Whale 2000 recently completed a non-stop 37-day test run in the South China Sea over a distance of 2,011km (1,250 miles), the Chinese Academy of Sciences reported. The mission path remained a secret, but with that range the drone could easily cover the Paracel and Spratly islands – claimed by China but also by its neighbours – and return to China's naval base in Sanya, Hainan.

Gallimaufry

Gallimaufry


Carnival cruise ships collided in Cozumel, Mexico on 20 Dec19, causing damage to both ships. Video posted online show the stern of the Carnival Glory crash into the bow of the Carnival Legend.

Carrier Fire Points to Weakness Behind Moscow's Military Might. It's been a mixed month for Russia and its military. In Syria, they took control of the former Islamic State capital Raqqa, strengthening their hand following the withdrawal of U.S. troops. In Ukraine, a new ceasefire should leave Moscow in control of territory it seized five years ago. Meanwhile in Murmansk, its only aircraft carrier caught fire. The fire on the Admiral Kuznetzov on 19 Dec2019, which killed one and injured at least 10 more, was only the latest mishap to befall the vessel. Earlier this year, it was damaged when a floating crane collapsed. Even at her most seaworthy – while conducting air strikes against Syria for example – her reliability clearly alarms Russian authorities enough to ensure she was always accompanied by a rescue tug.

“Carnival Glory was maneuvering to dock when it made contact with Carnival Legend which was already alongside,” Carnival said in a statement. “We are assessing the damage but there are no issues that impact the seaworthiness of either ship.”

IMO Secretary-General Hails 'Relatively Smooth' IMO 2020 Transition. IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim says the implementation of

new International rules limiting the sulphur content of fuel used by ships has gone relatively smoothly. “I believe it is testimony to the diligence and dedication of IMO, its Member States, the shipping industry, the fuel supply industry and other relevant industries that such a major rule change is being implemented successfully without significant disruption to maritime transport and those that depend on it,” Secretary-General Lim said in a prepared statement released Tuesday.

Under so-called IMO 2020 regulation, as of January 1, 2020 all ships trading internationally are required to use' fuel oil with a maximum sulphur content limit of reduced to 0.5%, down from the previous 3.5% limit, unless they are equipped with exhaust gas cleaning systems, aka scrubbers. The IMO says information from various sources have indicated a “relatively smooth” transition to the 0.5% limit. As of January 20, the IMO said it had received reports of 10 cases of fuel shortages and no specific reports of issues sent to a dedicated email address to report such issues.

“Prices for compliant fuels – very-low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) and marine gas oil (MGO) rose quickly initially but now appear to be stabilizing,” the statement said. Looking ahead, however, the shipping industry now must prepare for the March 1, 2020 deadline on the ban of the carriage of non-compliant fuel.

Courtesy : gCaptain

Maritime Snippets

India to allow Nepal to use its Rivers for Inland Waterways. , In Oct 2019 India has agreed in principle to allow landlocked Nepal to use three inland waterways, thus expanding its transit options to the sea. Nepal will be able to operate its own vessels on the Ganga, which runs parallel to the southern border of the Himalayan state. India consented to grant access to the Kolkata-Kalughat, Raxaul; Kolkata-Sahebganj- Biratnagar and Kolkata-Varanasi-Raxaul routes.

Courtesy : Maritime Gateway, Nov 2019


Gallimaufry

Projected Future Skills Needed of Mariners

By Shri Sukerna Amirapu

— Analytical thinking and innovation

— Complex problem-solving

— Emotional intelligence

ShippingAs a new decade commences, it is important to look at the direction that the maritime industry is heading towards. This would enable current human capital to be appropriately equipped to make meaningful contributions in the future.

The progress in technology necessitates a need to re-assess where the future demand is heading towards. Over the last few centuries, no other generation has experienced so much uncertainty about the accelerating rate of change in the technology-enabled environment. This change has given rise to new words in an ever-expanding English vocabulary. Our mobile phones are an example of 'ephimeralisation'. This expression was coined by the US visionary and philosopher Buckminster Fuller and is the tendency of technology to do more and more with less and less – until it can do everything with nothing!

The World Economic Forum has outlined a list of skills that the future workforce would create a demand for. These skills are updated every few years and the most recent version published is the 147-page 'The Future of Jobs Report – 2018'.A generic list of such skills would include the following:

— Creativity, originality and initiative

— Active learning and learning strategies

— Technology design and programming

— Critical thinking and analysis

— Leadership and social influence

— Systems analysis and evaluation

Changes in the external environment include Artificial Intelligence (AI) and deep-machine-learning, both of which hinge upon access to real-time mass data. The accuracy as well as reliability of predicting future events of a routine nature, is also improving by the day. Commercial implications in the maritime transport sector have seen a major disruption in how business processes have caused a reduction in human interface. A greater dependence on cargo-planning software clearly results in improved accuracy and reduced operational costs. The story involving onboard operations is the focus of mariners already out at sea and those contemplating a career in this industry.

The emphasis has moved away from traditional forms of expertise that primarily depended on a memory-based information approach, to one of using such information in a timely manner to solve situations. This change has been facilitated by a fundamental disruption in learning. According to Glenys Jackson of the UK-based Merchant Navy Training Board, the shift from 'driving' ships to 'controlling' operations is probably taking centre-stage.

Digital Learning 1.0 happened with the introduction of Massive Online Open Courses (MOOC) during the early part of the 2000's. The disruption in knowledge transfer happened when information dissemination was freely available and the traditional memory-based approach was no longer desired. With the advent of Digital Learning 2.0, the focus has shifted from information dissemination to getting people to critically think and collaborate to develop the desired skills, as identified in the ' World

— Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation

Shipping


Economic Forums Future of Jobs Report. The 'many to many' philosophy of collaborative learning would mean that there is not one single expert but a community of people who can learn from one another's experiences and knowledge. The buzzword seems to be 'MPPG' – mobile-first, participatory, personalized and group-based. The younger genera t ion would we lcome a participatory, mobile, and micro-learning era.Seafaring involves a mix of routine tasks of a predictable nature as well as unplanned situations that require a creative approach. It is this latter sector, that seafarers need to develop their skills in and hone these to deliver acceptable levels of solutions. Formal training in softer-skills should

ideally bring about effective leadership capabilities – something that took many years at sea and that too with very skilled and experienced mentors to facilitate on-the-job knowledge transfer. According to KD Adamson, CEO of Futurenautics, there is a need for personalising training in order to engage the younger learners in the workforce. Once way to achieve this may be the introduction of gamification, so that the gap between compliance and competence is adequately addressed.

Shri Sukerna Amirapu is IMF's Honorary Correspondent in Auckland, New Zealand

Across :

1. FOOT 2. AVAST 6. FATHOM 7. HITCH 9. BEND

19. CARDINAL 20. BOTTLESCREW 21. BAR 22. BREAKER 23. CAMELS

24. CHEEKS

1. FETCH 2. APORT 3. FANTAIL 4. COAMING 5. BITT

14. DERRICK 15. BRAIL 19. CRUTCHES 21. BROACH

8. FLANK 9. BREAKWATER 10. CABOTAGE 12. BINNACLE 13. CONVOY

11. CITADEL 12. BACKSTAYS 16. GEAR 17. FAIRWAY 18. BATTEN

Down :

Answers to Maritime Crosswords


The Outlaw OceanBy Capt Milind Paranjape

After 'The Outlaw Sea' by William Langewiesche in 2005, this book is on the same subject by a Pulitzer and George Polk award winning maritime journalist. The ocean is 'vulnerable and fragile because environmental threats travel far and wide'. In December 2013 a fishing ship named ' ' was declared the most wanted Thundership by Interpol for having illegally engaged in catching banned fish for several years profiting in millions. Skippered and manned by European officers mostly Spanish with Indonesian crew, the ' ' had changed many flags, finally ThunderNigerian, was scuttled near Sao Tome off west Africa to hide evidence of her crimes. It was thanks to vigilantes like Sea Shepherd and one of their ships captained by Sidharth Chakravarty.

Ms Gomperts, a Dutch physician, operates a yacht Adelaide equipped to carry out medical abortions of women from countries where abortions are illegal, outside territorial limits of those countries.

Yacht is registered in Austria where Adelaideabortions are legal. Her interview in Portugal helped raise public opinion to legalize abortion there.

Stowaways, mainly from African coast, are a big nuisance on ships and cost a great deal to ship-owners some of whom use services of Peter Rabatz, a German, specialized in dealing with the problem. He has linguists who speak even African and Arabic dialects. Stowaways often give away their nationality when confronted in friendly talk in their dialects. Coercion does not help. Sometimes stowaways accept cash handouts of a few thousand dollars and leave. It's still cheaper. Author has mentioned how ringleader of terrorist attack that killed the US ambassador to Libya, was caught by Americans and taken to Guantanamo.

There are many 'Port Scams' but narrative of a maritime fraud solved by 'outwitting a bandit in business suit' was the most interesting. a Sofia,tanker owned by a Greek con man Zolotas, owed large sums of money to it's mortgage lender, many other suppliers and in crew wages. It was sneaked out of inefficient Greek jurisdiction which is unsympathetic to foreign lenders or crews, by an American who is an expert in gray areas of maritime law, specially hired by the New York mortgagor.

'There is no shortage of laws governing the sea. The real problem is the lax enforcement.' One in every five fish is illegally caught, global black market for seafood being $ 20 B'. There is a misconception that ocean is a place of sui generisabundance; and all fish are more edible than worthy of protection. Author notes that fishermen switch off AIS (Automatic Identification System) so that their presence in prohibited waters is not detected. Indonesian guards kept at FAD (Fish Aggregating Device) are sometimes killed in fights with other fishermen. Efforts of Palau Archipelago 600 miles east of the Philippines, at conservation of dwindling fish stocks and difficulties a tiny nation faces to achieve that, are described in detail. Palau's GDP is dependent on tourism, mostly Chinese who like sea cucumbers ($150 a plate), jellyfish and other banned marine creatures. Even a Palau plane while chasing a Chinese poaching ship was mysteriously lost at sea.

Author interviewed villagers in the Philippines who had joined Taiwanese fishing boats through a Singapore manning agent (middleman) with no copy of written contracts, their passports taken away and received much less pay than promised. A young villager named Emil Rabalo was murdered, body with an eye missing and several bruises was brought back to the Philippines. Forced labour exists throughout the world, but nowhere is the problem more rampant than in the South China Sea, particularly on dirty and

Book Review


Illegal fishing and piracy are closely intertwined in Somali waters.Weak central government and rebellious local governments in autonomous states like Puntland compound the problem by blurring the lines between legitimate and illegitimate fishing. Real reason, according to the author being, government protecting illegal fishing mainly Thai -owned trawlers. Clan

In August 2013 Caribbean Princess the world's largest cruise liner was fined $40 m for 'magic pipe' bypassing the oily water separator and discharging untreated oily waste into the sea after a newly hired British junior engineer informed authorities. When ' ' another Costa Concordiaship of the same owner 'Carnival Corpn.' infamously capsized in 2012 on the coast of Italy, investigators uncovered reports of prostitution and mafia-stashed drugs on board.

Stella Maris the worldwide organisation of 'seamen's mission', run by Roman Catholic

Church is doing an admirable work for seamen. NatGeo TV aired a documentary “Lawless Oceans”on this subject. 'Catches shrink, tempers fray, fighting starts. Murder on these boats is relatively common.' Crime rate on fishing boats was twenty times that on merchant ships. So long as victims were not European or American, the story never resonated. 'Tough part was getting

data in the first place'. Armed gangs near Bangladesh waters and Sundarbans run protection rackets requiring ship captains to pay for safe passage. In five years after 2009 nearly 100 sailors and fishermen were killed each year in Bangla waters and many taken hostage - local media and police reported. Gun battles took place with air force and coastguard. Foreign minister Dipu Moni took umbrage at international media insisting it was not piracy but robbery by dacoits. International Maritime Bureau then changed accordingly. Private security guards are on ships (armouries) owned by British, American or Sri Lankans anchored in the Gulf

of Oman available for hiring. Two Italian guards on the killed two Indian fishermen Enrica Lexie 20 miles off the coast. Italian foreign minister resigned over his government sending the two guards to India for trial which he called offense to the “honour of the country and of the armed forces.” No mention is made of court proceedings in India. where men were Seaman Guard Ohio sentenced to five years by Chennai Court is also mentioned briefly.

In contrast to life on land, crimes at sea are very rarely caught on video. In fishing fleets of some countries phones are confiscated, therefore conditions persist. Captain of a Taiwanese trawler fishing illegally in Somali waters shot dead at least 5 men of another boat. It would have gone unreported had it not been for a cell phone left in the backseat of a taxicab in Fiji Islands! The nine telltale photos found in the cell phone are printed in the book. A Canadian named Karsten Von Hoeslin traced the culprits and three of the victims who were brothers from Pakistan. Hoeslin presented his findings to Taiwanese, Somali and Seychelles (where boats were registered) authorities who took no action.

dangerous Thai fishing fleet. In the bloated, inefficient, barely profitable Thai fleet captains require crew members to simply do what they were told, long hours, little food and paltry pay crew is paid. No complaints. Author sailed and interviewed many on boats. Joining advances were paid to smugglers who snuck the deckhands into the country. Cabin decks overrun with rats. His story on the front page of the New York Times prompted meeting by Thai ambassador there.

Book Review


Japanese government is openly complicit with whaling, calling it 'research', though it lost the case in International Court of Justice. 'Antarctic cycle of predation and depredation - the Japanese hunted the whales, while the Sea Shepherd hunted the Japanese. The whales stole the toothfish's meals, while the vacuum boats stole food from the whales.' Sea Shepherd is the same ocean conservation group that author accompanied on its chase of the . A 2012 ruling by a US Thunder

Court of Appeals restrained Sea Shepherd from approaching within 1500 feet of Japanese whalers. Iceland, Faroe Islanders and Norway also kill whales but only in their national waters, Japan in distant international Antarctic waters where only Sea Shepherd police them. Author explains how climate change is dangerously tipping the balance, upending the food chain in a w a y t h a t c o u l d p o t e n t i a l l y h a v e d i r e consequences for whales. It is also a reason for increased storms Southern Ocean is not .completely lawless. Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, CCAMLR, governs it.

leaders then sanction pirates to attack foreign boats. Foreign fishing companies were paying salaries of private military grade Somali Security Services. Consequence was SSS were more concerned about protecting foreigners from Somalis than the other way round. Puntland Maritime Police Force is funded by UAE which wants military base in Puntland. Another group patrolling was of the UN. Legitimate fishing boats, sometimes, were sent back by coalition forces because they looked like pirates. Freight companies and their insurers began imposing piracy fees $23 per container thus even after factoring ransom money, shipping companies were profiting from piracy. Still, the situation improved. Matter is complicated because trawlers were owned by Thais, manned by Cambodians, registered in Djibouti and operated in Somali waters and except the Thais, other governments were least cooperative. Author spent several days in Somalia, sometimes at a risk to his life, for collecting this information first hand.

Forced labour is more common on fishing ships that stay at sea longer. They avoid spot checks by officials by relying on transhipment of catch to shore and receiving supplies at sea. Labour advocates argue transhipment at sea should be banned or limited. A more Transparent Food Supply : consumers should be conscious of source of seafood. Seafood companies are considering requiring fishing ships to have IMO type permanent identification number which remains constant irrespective of ownership or flag, throughout a ship's life. That will identify the source of seafood. This lavishly illustrated book is a welcome arrival on a subject so important and yet so neglected.

is a Master MarinerCapt. Milind R. Paranjape

Book Review

Maritime Snippets

Courtesy : Maritime Gateway, Nov 2019

Sahebganj Multi-modal Terminal built on 187 acres of land alongside the river Ganga in Jharkhand is designed to handle bulk, break bulk and container cargo. Sahebganj MMT will move cargo originating from Jharkhand and Bihar to Bangladesh through Haldia, while connecting Inland Container Depot Biratnagar in Nepal.


Seagull 100 Inner - Indian Maritime Foundation · Letter from Canada Cdr. M S Randhawa I.N. (Retd.)...

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Transcript of Seagull 100 Inner - Indian Maritime Foundation · Letter from Canada Cdr. M S Randhawa I.N. (Retd.)...