MTRF plans to promote merchant navy among students

Maritime Training and Research Foundation (MTRF) has planned a series of skill development initiatives to promote merchant navy as a lucrative career option among students across the country. “Our prime goal is to impart world-class training to Indian seafarers and spread awareness about merchant navy in the country. In the current year, we plan to organise road shows in select cities in association with various universities,” MTRF chairman Capt Nalin Pandey said.

“Our road shows will render free career guidance to students keen on working as officers across various categories aboard specialised cargo ships,” he said. MTRF is promoted by Maritime Association of Shipowners, Shipmanagers & Agents (MASSA).

“We also endeavour to constantly upgrade the world-class training infrastructure promoted by MTRF. So far, we have spent over Rs 75 crore to develop the infrastructure at MASSA training institutes located in Mumbai and Chennai,” Pandey said.

MTRF’s move to strengthen its training infrastructure and promote merchant navy as a career option is expected to offer a plethora of employment opportunities to the youths, he said.

Growth of India’s merchant navy workforce is projected to be phenomenal as over the last decade seaborne trade has grown at twice the global growth rate of 3.3 per cent, Pandey said.

According to Shipping Ministry data, cargo traffic at Indian ports has doubled to 1 billion tonne per annum over the last decade and is expected to reach 1.7 billion tonne per annum by 2022.

The country’s maritime export-import has been growing at an average rate of 4.5 per cent year-on-year and accounts for about 95 per cent of the total import-export trade volume of India, a statement from MTRF said, Over the next 10 years, India’s maritime export import is anticipated to grow in the range of 5-10 per cent CAGR, it said.