Complaints received against ship-management agencies in India (RPS under DGS 2005)

Over the last few weeks, and more over the last few days after publishing Deepak Divekar's article (said issue having now been escalated to offices of DGS and NA/Jahaz Bhavan, Mumbai) I have received more than a few emails and telephone calls from impacted seafarers. Some of these have simple solutions, which could be implemented by the DGS or Shipping Master with no effor, if they really cared about the goodwill of seafarers and their familes - as well as some amount of protection for themselves, especially in context with seafarers sailing through non-RPS or on non-Indian flag vessels.

http://matescabin.blogspot.com/2011/10/request-to-all-those-with-complaints.html

http://matescabin.blogspot.com/2011/10/blacklist-of-defaulting-owners-and.html

Typically, these are the issues faced:-

# Seizing or holding back of documents like passport, CDC, STCW certificates and other originals by "agents", without issuing receipts, and then demanding money for the return. All the more problematic when the agent is unable provide a position on a ship, and the seafarer is losing opportunity while waiting, at his own cost. This often forces seafarers to accept lower paid positions which are also not useful from a career point of view.

I spoke to some of the better agencies and owners, and they simply do not do this - choosing to keep soft-copies instead, EXCEPT when originals are needed for visas, in which case the documented procedure is different. However, this practice is rampant with the majority of "ghatiyaa" agents, and that is what spoils the name of the community.

Suggestion:- Seizure or holding of documents is a criminal offence, but not much you as a seafarer can do unless you have a receipt. DGS and Shipping Master should immediately issue an order or circular that RPS agents and shipping companies must issue a receipt before taking any original documents, otherwise photocopies or soft copies should suffice.

# Ship that the seafarer landed up on is not the one he was selected for or told about. This may be regardless of articles or agreements signed. And once in a foreign port, in the middle of nowhere, nothing much the seafarer can do except suffer it out. This can happen in or off Indian ports too.

Again, the better agencies and owners provide vessel and company specific briefing, sometimes lasting as long as 2-4 working days, before sending a person out. Others, the ghatiyaa lot, often don't know much about things themselves. A seafarer has every right to know about the ship he is going on before he leaves home port.

Suggesion:- Seafarer must be provided with full particulars of the vessel he is being sent on, including basic minimum data on class, P&I, condition, age, and principal particulars - including all known details of owners and bankers. Once this is done, it is up to the seafarer. By rights, this data should be available online also, as soon as an owner or agent has the LOI or brief to provide Indian seafarers on the ship, then all details MUST be available on the agents website as well as on DG Shipping's website. No details, no Indian seafarer, atleast not through DGS or RPS Agent.

# Salaries are not paid in time, accounts are not received, exchange rate clarity is not provided and worst of all - deductions as well as taxation are not suitably explained.

This is the most amazing part of things in this day and age, when communications are instantaneous, and salaries should be in seafarer nominated accounts by or on the last date of the month.

Suggestion:- DGS / Shipping Master should take an 'action taken' report on a regular monthly reporting basis, submitted to the DGS not later than 7th of the next month, that ALL pending dues have been actually cleared in all cases - and exceptions, if any, with reasons, are to be listed vessel and person-wise.

# There was one salary indicated in the India office. There was another salary indicated in the contract signed. There was yet another salary in the articles. And then there was yet another different salary paid onboard. In addition, the joining date was w.e.f. the date the person joined the ship, rather than from the day he was confirmed for departure or actually departed.

The better companies who want to attract and retain better people tend to address this issue in a more reasonable way. But here again, it is the "ghatiyaa" agencies which spoil the industry's name.

Suggestion:- It should be made clear to the seafarer HOW MANY different agreements he shall have to be party to at the beginning itself, and he needs to be able to decide for himself if he wants to join or not. In advance.

# Vessel is sailing to or through piracy areas, and owner / operator is not relieving the seafarer.

Suggestion:- Your life and family's peace of mind is worth more than all the money you can earn. Pick up the phone, VHF, whatever, and call the Port Control, if your company is not getting you off the ship, and there is no help forthcoming from DGS / MMD / Shipping Master.

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More follows. There is suddenly a spate of articles required on FOC vessels after the grounding of the MSC chartered RENA off New Zealand (Astrolabe reef).

Further update on FAIRCHEM BOGEY IMO 9423750

Here's an update on what reportedly happened with the FAIRCHEM BOGEY, and a sordid tale of ineptitude and lack of real concern all around, as well as the realities.

# The FAIRCHEM BOGEY was anchored about 2 miles away from the shore.

# The first boarding by pirates was at about 0500 hours local time, when there was apparently only a quartermaster on the bridge, since the ship's complement was extremely tired. Fudging of time sheets is not an unknown truth in an industry where people have to prove that they worked only about 100 hours a week.

# Alarms and MAYDAY issued on Channel 16 immediately, and then continued on Channel 16 open for all in vicinity to hear.

# More pirates boarded till about 0700 hours local time.

# The Port of Salalah immediately contacted the Royal Omani Army, Navy and Coast Guard - it appears that the Navy did not even have anybody to pick up the phone at 0500 hrs.

# It took the ship 3 hours and 20 minutes to start moving seawards under pirate control from anchor. It is assumed that about 1.5/2.0 hours was spent in getting in and then out of the citadel, some seafarers were left outside the citadel, though this is not confirmed either.

# When Royal Omani Navy deployed a patrol boat and ordered the vessel to stop or they would shoot, the response was "don't shoot they will kill us" from the ship.

# Helicopters were not deployed to attempt to put special forces onboard, also slight mist/fog, reported.

# The Royal Omani patrolboat that followed gave up the chase after about 40 nautical miles.

# An Italian and a Chinese warship which were present in Salalah declined to do anything as the incident was in Omani territorial waters.

# Some members of the ship's complement were apparently able to contact their family members.

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The bigger issues here will be discussed in the next post. Interim, it is interesting to note that the owners/operators of the FAIRCHEM BOGEY have taken down much of the details of their company from their website, though the same are available variously elsewhere.

FAIRCHEM BOGEY pirated from Salalah Anchorage

http://thoughtso.wordpress.com/2011/08/20/thats-a-dare-pirates-catch-omanis-napping-21-indians-to-pay-the-price/

Here's Jugal Purohit's blog on the subject of the FAIRCHEM BOGEY piracy from Salalah (Oman/Muscat) anchorage in broad daylight.

More follows.


Pirates of the Somali basin, early this morning, took their prowess a notch above when they managed to whisk out a chemical/oil tanker right from under the nose of the authorities at the Port of Salalah. The MT Fairchem Bogey (IMO: 9423750; GRT: 15190; Flag: Marshall Island) was at anchorage, barely 4-5 nautical miles from the shore after entering the port in the early hours of August 18.
The Fairchem Bogey was to load 20,000 tonnes of methanol later today and sail out on August 21.
Even though the disease of piracy has forced the Europeans and Chinese to deploy naval assets to safeguard their economic interests, it was only today that this neighbouring port which claims to be a ‘worldclass transshipment hub’ was woken up to the reality of being in a conflict zone. Unfortunately though, the price for this folly is being paid by the hijacked crew of 21 Indians on board the ship.
Latest positions reveal the ship as travelling south-west, towards Somalia and has logged atleast 90 nautical miles since being taken over. As far as the news of this development, which can affect ‘business interests’, it is learnt that it may just be relegated to the cold storage in Omani media.

Sequence of events
According to a source, it was a dhow (Ocean-going trawler) which was used by the pirates to work its way up to the ill-fated ship and hijack it. “For a dhow to be in the anchorage is very normal, unlike in the other ports. That is because, this area sees a lot of unregistered trade which dhows carry out. The reach of these dhows extends from the Gujarat coast in India till the Horn of Africa,” said a source located in Salalah.
However, an alert sailor on watch duty onboard the Fairchem Bogey actually detected something amiss and raised an alarm. “Immediately, the crew hurried to the strong-house or citadel and locked themselves up. From there, they pleaded with the port authorities for help,” the source added. Simultaneously, an unknown number of pirates’ managed to climb onboard the ship. “It was the crew’s misfortune that one or two crew members could not make it to the citadel and were left out. This worked to the pirates advantage as the well-armed bandits apprehended the isolated crew members,” the official added.
A practice followed very religiously is that once even a single crew member falls into the hand of an armed pirate, then all means of using force to secure their fate are withdrawn. This is done to avoid risking the life/lives of the crew member/s.
With that act of apprehending, the fate of the 21 Indians onboard, thus was sealed.
In addition to this, the pirates also got two full hours to force the remaining crew out of the citadel and complete their mission. Once done, the ship charted its course to the Somali badlands. As per information available, the captain of the ship also communicated to the authorities that armed pirates had taken charge of the ship and thus all action be suspended.
Security Level 1
Speaking to a local operator, aware of the inner-workings of the Salalah port, it was understood that despite the proximity to the Somali and Yemeni coast – the springboards of the modern-day piracy – the state of alert at the port was at level one. Effectively, this would translate into a ‘normal’ state of affairs with hardly any enhanced security measures in place. Could this have been averted? “Of course. The authorities here have rather been lax as something as daring as this has never even been conceived,” he stated.

“At present, the authorities are desperately seeking clues on this spectacular raid. Inquiries are being made and rumours mills are working over-time. But the fact remains that they have little or no lead,” added the source.
Helpless in such cases: DG Shipping
In a document accessed, the DGS, which has often attracted flak for being unable to react effectively to this malaise, has admitted that it has virtually no jurisdiction to tackle cases like this even where Indian interests are involved.
The port authorities meanwhile did not immediately offer a comment.