Deadline For Shipping Policy Extended

The Union surface transport ministry has extended the deadline for formulating the national shipping policy to June 30, 1997. The earlier deadline expired in May.

At present, a high -powered 11 member committee headed by the director-general of shipping, M P Pinto, is formulating the policy. The panel was set up in early March.

A source on the panel said that the earlier deadline could not be adhered to as the time given was too short.

Despite the fact that the members meet once in every 10 days, the deadline could not be met. The policy is being formulated after widespread consultations and will stay in place for 10 to 15 years. This cannot be done in a hurry, the source added.

 

However, the source was optimistic about the revised deadline being met. An industry observer however expressed scepticism about even this. The committee is seriously considering whether the shipping industry's long standing demand for infrastructure status should be accepted. It is also contemplating