Shipping ministry plans marketing blitz

The shipping ministry will soon launch a marketing blitzkrieg to make Indian seafarers a prized catch for global shipping flags and project India as a unique maritime hub in Asia-Pacific.

Not only will Indian pavilions adorn the international fairs in Posidonia, Greece and Nor Shipping, Norway, and road shows organised in countries with large fleets, but delegations including ambassadors and high commissioners from these countries would also be hosted in India to showcase the Indian training infrastructure and capabilities of Indian seafarers.

The ministry has already booked two domain names IndianSeafarer.com and SeafarersFromIndia.com and a website would be launched by April, officials said.

It also plans to write CDs for presentation to global shipowners and in other international fora. An Indian Seafarers' Promotion Council would also be put in place with government and industry representation.

The maritime states would be expected to actively contribute to the council and also promote maritime education and training through their public relations department.

The ministry is in the process of identifying markets which would be done through surveys, interviews and questionnaires directed towards global ship owners and managers and Indian employers. While for latter the data is in final stage of compilation, raw data is still being collected for international markets

According to the latest BIMCOISF manpower update, there would be massive global shortage of qualified officers in years to come. The survey suggests a shortfall of 23,000 officers by next year which is expected to double by 2010.