Fresh Shipping Guidelines Issued

The ministry of shipping has issued guidelines allowing import of all types of ships and vessels below 25 years of age without the mandatory technical clearance and price reasonableness certification from government agencies.

"No prior technical clearance will be required for vessels below 25 years of age proposed to be acquired by a company," the fresh guidelines said on the residual norms issued by the ministry of shipping, which follow the amendment to the Exim Policy 1997-2002 on March 31, 2001, has said.

The vessels, on arrival in the country, would be surveyed at the time of registration by the principal officer, Mercantile Maritime Department (PO, MMD) to ensure that the vessel was classified with one of the IACS member classification societies, including associate member, and complied with statutory requirements of Director General of Shipping and International Maritime Organisation (IMO) conventions and protocols signed by India, an official release today said.

Prior technical clearance would be required for vessels of and above 25 years of age, the release said adding that no price reasonableness certificate would be required for import of vessels.

Technical clearance for acquisition of vessels under bareboat charter-cum-demise (BBCD) arrangement would not reqire price reasonableness certificate but interest margin on rental payments would be verified by ICICI.

The charter period of the vessel would be for a maximum period of five years and the rental agreement would come into force after the Reserve Bank of India takes it on record, it added.