The issue included the acknowledgment of Certificates of Service (CoS) and Certificates of Competence (CoC) acquired by the officers of the Indian Navy while they were in administration, without examination, for the reasons for the Merchant Navy according to the necessities of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958. Segment 80 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 which gave this acknowledgment was canceled in 1986 to offer impact to the principles of Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) 1978. This Certificate was a prerequisite under the STCW 1978. The STCW 1978 was changed in 1995 to wind up known as STCW 1995. The STCW 1995 gave that current holders of the testament ought to finish endorsed preparing evaluation and get a new Certificate of Competence. As per this, the Government of India issued important notices actualizing the necessities of STCW 1995. The short question that emerged in the witness of the Court concerned whether the Certificate of Service issued under Section 80 of the Merchant Shipping Act (now canceled) could keep on being dealt with as a Certificate under the Convention after the 1978 Convention, as corrected by STCW 1995 which hence came into power.
The Judgment
The Court, while taking a gander at the setting of the STCW 1978, noticed the present status of the Convention versus India. It expressed:
The International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers 1978 (STCW 78) came into power universally. India was one of the signatories to the Convention and confirmed the Convention on 16 February, 1986. The object of the Convention is to have uniform models of preparing and affirmation. In this way, Article VI of the 1978 Convention charges that Certificates be issued for experts, officers or appraisals. It gives that these should be issued to those hopefuls who meet the prerequisites for administration, age, restorative wellness, preparing, capability and examinations as per the proper procurements. The 1978 Convention was altered in 1995 and is known as STCW 1995. This 1995 Convention widely changed the 1978 Convention, however Article I to XVII of the 1978 Convention stayed unamended. Therefore, the Merchant Shipping (STCW) Rules, 1998 were likewise encircled. Principle 11, bury alia, requires that current CoS holders who mean to wind up holders of the CoC should be required to finish affirmed preparing appraisal. Additionally, Rule 15 requires that each Master on a seagoing of 500 gross tonnage or more should hold a fitting Certificate of Competency in Form 3.
The Court did not concur with the dispute of the Petitioners that Section 5 of the altered Merchant Navy Act, 1958 spared a portion of the impacts of the revoked Section 80 (which perceived the Navy officers' Certificate of Service) of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958. The Court, looking at the status of Section 80, expressed, No uncertainty Section 80 of the Act was holding the field before it was changed however it has been overshadowed with the development of the 1978 Convention as altered by the 1995 Convention. With the rise of the 1995 Convention there is no procurement for indefinite continuation of CoS in admiration of the officers of the Merchant Ships. As effectively saw, the candidates are currently serving in [the] Merchant Navy. India, being a signatory to the 1995 Convention, needs to guarantee uniform models, as endorsed by the Convention.
