Opportunities are Aplenty in off Shore Field
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What made you join the merchant navy in general and navigation in particular?
I joined the merchant navy as I had a keen interest in it, right from my childhood. My father has been a master (captain) since 1972 and seeing him go on ships encouraged me to join this career and specifically navigation because this field satisfies the human nature of mastering a machine.
What skills or qualities are important for survival and success in this profession?
The training provided on shore prior to joining the vessel and after joining makes every individual capable of being a good sailor. The skills and qualities needed are:
- Be physically fit with 6/6 eyesight and no colour blindness
- Be a go-getter
- Be prepared for sudden changes in routine
- Should not be too specific about the food that he eats (can eat vegetarian or non-vegetarian food)
- Cannot be too much of a family man (should not be someone who cannot live without his parents, wife and child, or vice versa)
- Should be patient
- Must be systematic
What's the scope in navigation today?
The scope is very good, as the current Indian scenario is such that marine-related (opportunities) are still open to be exploited.
How do the pay packages vary for Indian and foreign ships?
Indian ships pay at par with foreign ones. However, due to the tax deductions on income earned, Indian ships' pay in hand may be less than foreign ships'. (See info box for figures)
Other than teaching and consultancy, what are the onshore options for navigation officers?
There are many onshore opportunities, including:
- Ship agency jobs
- Port captaincy
- Port agency
- Logistics related - this means transporting cargo from the seller to buyer. For example, Wallenius Wilhemsen transports Nissan vehicles from Chennai to other countries.
- Container handling/ planning/ logistics agency
- Port pilots, port administration
- Commercial operations of a ship operator/ owner/ manager
- Be a part of technical, training, or operations team of a ship management firm
- Work with government or private surveying firms, ship/port suppliers
- Tanker operations/ safety/fixtures, marine, safety and quality team of a ship manager/owner - there are vessels which carry oil, chemicals and gas in bulk. There are experienced personnel needed for managing the operations of these ships, for safety, fixing cargoes and to carry out quality and standards maintenance activities
- With enhanced education, a person can get into freight forwarding, multi-modal transport operations or logistics, etc.
- There are various jobs in the off-shore industry
Author: Rahat Bano (HT Horizons)
Date: 4th November, 2010
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