Parliament passes Ships Recycling Bill; Know here why it is a historic moment in Indian maritime arena
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New Delhi, December 10: Parliament has passed the Recycling of Ships Bill, 2019, with the Rajya Sabha approving it on Monday. The Lok Sabha has already cleared it last week. The bill restricts the use of hazardous materials on ships and regulates recycling of ships.
What does the Bill say:
The bill defines ship recycling as dismantling it at a facility to recover the components and materials for reuse and taking care of the hazardous material so produced. Under the legislation, every ship recycler must ensure safe and environmentally sound removal and management of hazardous materials from a ship.
Shipping Minister, Mansukh Mandaviya moved the bill. He said the industry provides ample employment in the country and ten per cent steel requirement of the country is fulfilled from the recycling of ships.
On contravening these provisions, the ship recycler will be liable to pay environmental damages and cleanup operation compensation as prescribed. For instance, in case of an oil spill, a ship recycle may have to cough up up to ₹5 lakh in case there is no response within the first 12 hours of issuing the notice.
Ships recycling facilities will become compliant to international standards and will be recycled only in authorised facilities. “Now, ships to be recycled in India will need to obtain a ‘Ready for Recycling Certificate’ in accordance with the Hong Kong Convention," the government said in a statement.
Till now only the guidelines of the Supreme Court passed in 2013, as code on hazardous waste management were being followed. Those guidelines have been dovetailed with The Hong Kong Convention 2009. “The Hong Kong Convention lays down the measures as well as legal boundaries for enforcement of green recycling of ships,” said Mansukh Mandaviya.
The Bill is expected to raise the brand value of ship recycling yards located at Alang in Gujarat, Mumbai Port, Kolkata Port and Azhikkal in Kerela.
Some Important Statistics:
- India has a share of over 30% in the global ship recycling industry.
- There are 53,000 merchant ships globally. Every year 1,000 are recycled and 300 are recycled in India.
- Currently, India recycles 70 lakh gross tonnage of ships per annum. Bangladesh's contribution is 68 lakh gross tonnage. Pakistan scraps ships worth 37 lakh gross tonnage, while China accounts for 34 lakh gross tonnage of recycling. Together, these four countries account for 90 per cent of the ships recycled globally.
- Ship recycling's contribution to GDP is USD 1.3 billion (about Rs 9,200 crore) at present, which is expected to almost double to USD 2.2 billion (about Rs 15,600 crore).
- As per the Review of Maritime Transport, 2018 report published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), in 2017, India demolished 6,323 tonnes of known ship scrapping worldwide.
- Direct jobs from recycling sector were likely to double to about 90,000. Countries like Norway and Japan and many other EU countries are eagerly looking forward to dispatch their ships to India for recycling.
- India is looking to raise its global share in ship recycling business to 60 per cent and almost double its contribution to country's GDP to about USD 2.2 billion post enactment of a law for recycling of ships.
The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) adopted the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships in 2009, which is aimed at ensuring that ships being recycled after reaching the end of their operational lives do not pose any unnecessary risks to human health, safety and the environment. The current passing of the bill is indeed a giant step and a historic milestone in the maritime arena of Inida.