{"id":40395,"date":"2025-04-04T19:15:11","date_gmt":"2025-04-04T13:45:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=40395"},"modified":"2025-04-04T19:15:14","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T13:45:14","slug":"ls-passed-coastal-shipping-bill-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/04-04-2025\/ls-passed-coastal-shipping-bill-2024","title":{"rendered":"LS Passed Coastal Shipping Bill, 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS3\/Economy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Lok Sabha has passed the <strong>Coastal Shipping Bill, 2024<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Bill <strong>regulates vessels engaged in trade within Indian coastal waters,<\/strong> which include territorial waters and adjoining maritime zones.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Bill is based on <strong>global best practices<\/strong> <strong>and dedicated laws<\/strong> of major maritime nations.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It <strong>consolidates and amends laws related<\/strong> to coastal shipping, promotes coasting trade, and encourages domestic participation.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Major Highlights<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Coastal Waters: <\/strong>Territorial waters extend up to<strong> 12 nautical miles (about 22 km)<\/strong>, and adjoining maritime zones extend up to <strong>200 nautical miles (about 370 km).<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Repeal of Merchant Shipping Act: <\/strong>The Bill seeks to repeal Part XIV of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958, regulating ships in coastal trade.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Vessel Types Covered: <\/strong>The Bill regulates all types of vessels,<strong> including ships, boats, sailing vessels, and mobile offshore drilling units.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Expansion of Coasting Trade Definition: <\/strong>The Bill expands coasting trade to include services like exploration, research, and other commercial activities (except fishing).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Licence Requirements:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Vessels wholly owned by <strong>Indian citizens don&#8217;t need a licence<\/strong> for coasting trade.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Vessels not wholly owned by Indian citizens need a licence.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs) hiring vessels for operations outside India are exempt from the licence requirement.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Licence Issuance: The Director General of Shipping, <\/strong>appointed by the central government, issues licences.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Increased Penalties: <\/strong>The Bill raises the maximum fine for unlicensed coasting trade to Rs 15 lakh or four times the gains from the unlicensed voyage.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Replaces imprisonment penalties with civil penalties<\/strong> (up to Rs 5 lakh or twice the gains from contravention).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>National Strategy Plan: <\/strong>The central government must prepare a National Coastal and Inland Shipping Strategic Plan within two years of the Act\u2019s commencement.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>National Database: <\/strong>Introduces a National Database for Coastal Shipping to enhance transparency and coordination.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Exemption Powers: <\/strong>The central government has the power to exempt certain classes of vessels from the Bill\u2019s provisions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ease of Doing Business:<\/strong> Removes the general trading license requirement for Indian ships and reduces compliance burdens.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Support for Indian Shipbuilding:<\/strong> Encourages foreign vessels to support Indian shipbuilding and employment for seafarers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>India\u2019s Shipping Sector<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Cargo Traffic Growth:<\/strong> Coastal cargo traffic surged by <strong>119% from 2014-2024,<\/strong> with a <strong>target of 230 million tonnes by 2030.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Achievements: <\/strong>The Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways has increased cargo handling capacity by <strong>103% in the last decade<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Port Ranking Improvement:<\/strong> India\u2019s port ranking improved from <strong>54th in 2014 to 38th in 2023, <\/strong>with nine Indian ports now in the top 100 globally.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Future Goals: <\/strong>India has outlined investments of <strong>US$ 82 billion in port infrastructure projects by 2035 <\/strong>to bolster the maritime sector.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India plans to establish a new shipping company to <strong>expand its fleet by at least 1,000 ships within a decade.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Initiatives by Government<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Sagarmala Programme: <\/strong>Focuses on leveraging India\u2019s coastline and of navigable waterways.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Supports port infrastructure, coastal development, and connectivity.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Financial aid for projects like coastal berths, rail\/road connectivity, fish harbours, cruise terminals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Maritime India Vision 2030 (MIV 2030): <\/strong>Aiming for India to become a top 10 shipbuilding nation by 2030 and create a world-class, efficient, and sustainable maritime ecosystem.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Includes 150+ initiatives across ten key maritime sectors.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Inland Waterways Development: <\/strong>26 new national waterways identified by the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI).\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Provides alternative, sustainable transport, easing road\/rail congestion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Green Tug Transition Program (GTTP): <\/strong>Aims to replace fuel-based harbour tugs with eco-friendly, sustainable fuel-powered tugs.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Transition to be completed by 2040 across major ports.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Sagarmanthan Dialogue: <\/strong>An annual maritime strategic dialogue to position India as a global center for maritime conversations.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Maritime Development Fund: <\/strong>\u20b925,000 crore fund for long-term financing to modernize ports and shipping infrastructure, encouraging private investment.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Shipbuilding Financial Assistance Policy (SBFAP 2.0): <\/strong>Modernized to help Indian shipyards compete with global giants.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Bill seeks to unlock the full potential of India\u2019s vast and strategic coastline, providing a dedicated legal framework for coastal trade.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It will reduce our dependence on foreign vessels and significantly lower logistics costs, promote green transport, and create jobs in shipbuilding, port services, and vessel manning.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The efforts will take India\u2019s maritime sector toward a sustainable, innovative, and future-ready ecosystem, ensuring its place as a central player in the global maritime landscape.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/pib.gov.in\/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2118487#:~:text=The%20Lok%20Sabha%20passed%20the,decongest%20road%20and%20rail%20network.\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>PIB<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Lok Sabha has passed the Coastal Shipping Bill, 2024.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40395","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40395"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40395\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40396,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40395\/revisions\/40396"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}