THE Indian government has proposed a mandatory rule that at least one sea-going tug or towing vessel per seaport be ready for an emergency response in the event of disaster, reports the Press Trust of India.

According to the Co-pilot AI chatbot, that would force 80 per cent of ports in India, given that 10,000 tonnes/year is a relatively low threshold for commercial ports. Even small feeder ports and regional terminals exceed this volume.

This will include all Indian ports, whether big or small, handling 10 million tonnes of cargo a year. India has faced serious maritime incidents along its coastline that exposed vulnerabilities in the current emergency response framework, the PTI report said.

Also, it should be noted that the tug must have sea-going capabilities and must be equipped for emergency duties that include firefighting, towing, and pollution response.

Starting from the sinking of containership MSC ELSA 3 in May, along with major fire and explosion of container ship WAN HAI 503 in June, off the coast of Kerala, led to the falling of containers in waters.

In the draft notice, the regulator said that year after year, incidents of fire, machinery failure, grounding, etc, occurred around the Indian coast, particularly during the monsoon months. This has prompted the urgent deployment of tugs for towing and other functions.

As of now, the Directorate General of Shipping has positioned two Seagoing Emergency Towing Vessels (ETVs) one each based at Mumbai and Chennai.

https://www.shippingazette.com/news?news_id=9250700000540