CHENNAI

Expressing concern over recurring fatal accidents involving young Indian seafarers, the Directorate General of Maritime Administration (DGMA) has banned the recruitment or engagement of Indian seafarers in the Sarawak Region of Malaysia. 

The shipping regulator directed Recruitment and Placement Service Licence (RPSL) companies not to employ Indian seafarers for Inland, Riverline and Coastal Vessels of the Sarawak Region saying that fatal accidents involving young Indian seafarers deployed in Malaysia had occurred on a recurring basis, year after year. 

As part of the bilateral engagement between India and Malaysia on matters concerning the safety and regulation of Indian seafarers, the Malaysia Marine Department (MMD) had furnished findings and recommended preventive measures governing the recruitment, deployment, sign-on and sign-off of Indian seafarers on Malaysian-flagged vessels, to reduce fatalities.

Invoking provisions under Section 301 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025, the DGMA asked RPSL agencies not to deploy Indian seafarers on any vessel operating exclusively within the inland, riverine, coastal or port-limit waters of the Sarawak Region of Malaysia. 

₹1 crore insurance cover  

In a related development, the DGMA told RPSL agencies to ensure mandatory insurance for Indian seafarers engaged in foreign flagged vessels. The norm would apply to vessels that were not covered under the Protection & Indemnity (P&I) insurance. In cases where a vessel was not covered under the P&I insurance, the RPSL agency should ensure that mandatory insurance coverage of not less than ₹1 crore per seafarer was obtained from any of the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority (IRDA) approved Indian insurance companies. 

There was need for such an insurance to safeguard the dignity, safety and welfare of Indian seafarers and to ensure availability of valid and verifiable financial security in respect of vessels engaging Indian seafarers, the DGMA said.