On December 17, 2020, the 3rd meeting of Joint Working Group (JWG) on shipping between India and Denmark was held virtually to identify areas of co-operation between the two countries.
Indian Delegation:
It was led by the Secretary, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW) Dr. Sanjeev Ranjan and included Director General (DG) of Shipping Amitabh Kumar, Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) Madhu Nair and Chairman of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) Sanjay Sethi among other senior officials.
Denmark Delegation:
The Danish side was represented by DG, Danish Maritime Authority, Andreas Nordseth and the Ambassador of Denmark in India Freddy Svane among other senior officials.
Key Points:
–Both parties agreed on crew exchange.
–Both side also agreed on cooperation on matters of mutual interest in the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) by holding web-meetings in negotiations concerning greenhouses gas emissions.
–The agreement for mutual cooperation between Gujarat Maritime University (GMU) and Copenhagen Business School (CBS) was also concluded between both nations.
— The Danish delegation proposed that along with the next meeting of the JWG, an India-Danish web conference will be organised in April, 2021.
Proposals by Indian side:
–The Indian side proposed to extend invitation to the Technical University of Denmark (DPU) to become a global partner in the Maritime Knowledge Cluster being developed by India.
–It also proposed to invite CBS to become a global partner for research areas relating to Maritime Law, Finance and Governance.
–India also put forth an increase of training seats for the Indian cadets by Danish ShipOwners’ Association.
–It was proposed that both nations formulate a joint strategy to tackle the problem of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
–Indian side requested a presentation of on-line ship registration module on block-chain technology from Denmark so that India can also consider the use of block chain technology in ship registration module.
–India has identified a number of projects in the Port Sector for public-private partnerships (PPP) and for use of green technology in the Port Sector. It will consider the cooperation from Denmark for the same for floating solar power stations and shore-based power supply at Indian Ports can be.
- In this regard, India also nominated three nodal officers, to take the discussion forward from the Indian side viz. DG, Shipping, Chairman, CSL, and Chairman, JNPT.
Recent Related News:
i.The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) (operational name NavIC – Navigation with Indian Constellation) has been accepted as a component of the World Wide Radio Navigation System (WWRNS) for operation in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) by IMO.
ii.The President of India has gave his assent for renaming Shipping Ministry as the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways by exercising of the powers conferred by clause (3) of Article 77 of the Constitution and by amending the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961.
About Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW):
Minister of State (MoS)-Independent Charge (I/C)– Mansukh Laxmanbhai Mandaviya
About Denmark:
Capital – Copenhagen
Currency – Danish krone
Prime Minister – Mette Frederiksen
