Arun Jaitley News

Cochin Shipyard Ltd (CSL),  India's largest public sector shipyard, has filed  initial public offering (IPO)document with  the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)  to go public. The government approved a stake sale of up to 25 percent. Cochin Shipyard IPO will consist of 34 million shares to raise about INR 1,400-1,500 crore (USD 214 - 229 million). On completion of a successful IPO, CSL will become the first of five state-owned shipbuilding companies to be publicly listed. It has filed a draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with SEBI. The company, which built India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier, the INS Vikrant, is looking to raise funds to set up new construction and repair facilities.

India, the world’s fourth-largest buyer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), has announced plans to halve its basic customs duty on imports of the chilled fuel. Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presenting the Budget for 2017-18 in Parliament halved the import duty on LNG to 2.5 per cent, a move that will help cut cost of power and fertiliser production. "Considering the wide range of use of LNG as fuel as well as feed stock for petro-chemicals sector, I propose to reduce the basic customs duty on LNG from 5 per cent to 2.5 per cent," he said. The state of Gujarat will be the largest beneficiary of the reduction in the basic custom duty on the LNG.

Indian shipping trade union the National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI) has asked the Indian Ministry of Shipping for financial help toward the training of maritime workforce in oil exploration activities. The union’s General Secretary, Abdulgani Serang, said NUSI has requested financial aid and incentives from the Ministry through National Shipping Board for training the maritime workforce at NUSI Offshore Training Institute (NOTI), currently operated by NUSI-ITF Trust. NOTI trains the workforce that operates specialized vessels…

Finance Ministry Arun Jaitley in Union Budget for financial 2016-17 (Apr-Mar) has announced imposition of 14% service tax on services provided by domestic shipping companies transporting goods from outside India. “The service tax on services provided by shipping companies by way of transportation of goods by a vessel from outside India up to the customs station in India will be 14% with effect from 1 June, 2016,” said the Budget. Shipping Corporation of India, Mercator and Great Eastern Shipping among others are some of the top domestic shipping companies. The Modi government has allocated Rs 800 crore next fiscal year for development of new ports and ongoing work on its National Waterways project, Arun Jaitley said.

India's troubled shipping sector has been passing through tumultuous waters in recent years with over 40 per cent of the country’s fleet older than 20 years and about 12 per cent of them being 12-15 years old, says the Economic Survey 2015-16 , tabled in Parliament by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday. The decline in the Baltic Dry Index, a freight index that depicts the robustness of trade, from 10,720 in May 2008 to 386 in January 2016 “is a reflection of the slowdown in India’s and the world’s merchandise trade as well as of overseas shipping services,” according to the statement tabled in Parliament. "The shipping sector has been passing through tumultuous waters in recent years... There is urgent need to increase India's shipping fleet.

India will change existing laws governing ports to make them more profitable and efficient, the shipping minister said on Wednesday, putting on hold a plan to turn them into corporate entities under pressure from trade unions and political parties. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley earlier this year announced a plan to corporatise ports, widely seen as an attempt to raise revenues by listing them. Nitin Gadkari said the government has moved to amend existing laws to make the ports' management more independent and professional so that they can be efficient and bring down turnaround times of ships at the 12 major ports in the country. The…

Anti-Corruption Bureau in the state of Gujarat has ordered by a Kutch court to probe the alleged multi-million rupee scam in Kandla Port Turst (KPT), has filed a revision petition saying the case be handed over to a national agency like CBI instead, reports PTI. “Gandhidham unit of ACB filed a revision plea before the sessions court yesterday and challenged the magistrate’s order to probe the scam. We have demanded that the case should be probed by a national agency, probably CBI, and we certainly cannot do it as the Trust comes under the Union Government” police inspector C J Sureja of ACB said. The sources in KPT as well as the Ministry of Shipping said that options are being evaluated with regards to what action can be taken against the official who has come under scrutiny.

The Port and Dock Workers Federation (AITUC) has decided to defer the strike proposed from March 16, in view of the Central Labour Commissioner appointing a committee to study the demands and grievances of workers and employees of major ports. The Federation has decided to defer the strike after a favorable result at the meeting called by the Central Labour Commissioner in New Delhi in which members of trade unions, employees’ representatives and chairmen of three major ports participated, said Honorary president of the Port and Dock Workers Federation VV Rama Rao. All-India Ports and Docks Workers Federation has also decided to withdraw the strike notice which was served to oppose central government’s plan to corporatize the 12 major ports of India.

Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in Union Budget 2015 that government-run ports in India will be encouraged to corporatize and become companies under the Companies Act. In an attempt to professionalize Indian ports, which have been reeling under infrastructure bottlenecks, leading to massive delays in cargo movement, the government will encourage the 12 major ports run by the government to get corporatized. “Ports in the public sector need to both attract such investment as well as leverage the huge land resources lying unused with them. To enable us to do so, ports in public sector will be encouraged to corporatize and become companies under the Companies Act,” the Minister said.

The shipping ministry of India had circulated a draft policy note seeking comments from various ministries ahead of its submission to the cabinet. And, without the views of the finance ministry, the policy cannot be taken to the cabinet for approval. The beleaguered shipbuilding industry is keeping its fingers crossed as it awaits finance minister budget on 28 February. Shipbuilding has the potential to increase the contribution of the industry and the services sector to national gross domestic product (GDP). The maritime sector, including, ports, shipping industry and merchant navy has the potential to ignite growth, both through a trade resurgence and development of ancillary businesses.

In a fresh bid to make India an enduring strategic partner, U.S. President Barack Obama lands in New Delhi on Sunday for a highly symbolic parade and to nurture friendship with a prime minister who until last year was persona non grata in Washington. Obama will be the first U.S. president to attend India's Republic Day parade, a show of military might long associated with the anti-Americanism of the Cold War, and will host a radio show with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His presence at Monday's procession at Modi's personal invitation is the latest revival in a roller-coaster relationship between the two largest democracies that just a year ago was in tatters.

Indian shipbuilders buoyed by a renewed political will, a plan and funding to help the industry recover. It has been a long wait for the 28 shipbuilders in India to finally catch sight of  opportunities to sail back into the better financial waters. The newly elected Narendra Modi’s BJP’s party brought in a strong stable government, the first in nearly 30 years, and has given an unprecedented, massive boost in promoting Indian shipping in its recent Union Budget. Most industry stakeholders consider this to be a very positive and unexpected turn of events, as the previous succession of governments that have been largely unsupportive of all matters maritime, despite the industry crying itself hoarse for a level playing field to enable it to face cut-throat overseas competition.