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By:

Commodore S.L. Deshmukh

31 October 2024 at 8:30:19 am

The Digital Compass at Sea

Electronic chart systems have transformed maritime navigation, but their promise of safer voyages depends on reliable data and rigorous regulatory compliance. The sea has always punished navigational complacency. For centuries, mariners relied on paper charts, manual plotting and accumulated experience to steer vessels through treacherous waters. These methods remain part of maritime tradition, but modern shipping demands a more integrated approach to navigation. The Electronic Chart Display...

The Digital Compass at Sea

Electronic chart systems have transformed maritime navigation, but their promise of safer voyages depends on reliable data and rigorous regulatory compliance. The sea has always punished navigational complacency. For centuries, mariners relied on paper charts, manual plotting and accumulated experience to steer vessels through treacherous waters. These methods remain part of maritime tradition, but modern shipping demands a more integrated approach to navigation. The Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS) represents a decisive step in that direction, combining official digital charts with real-time information from a vessel’s navigational sensors. Its growing importance reflects a simple truth: in an industry where a minor navigational error can have catastrophic consequences, better information can make the difference between a safe passage and disaster. ECDIS is not merely a digital version of a paper chart. It is a type-approved navigational information system that displays official Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs) and integrates data from equipment such as the Global Positioning System (GPS), gyrocompass, radar, Automatic Radar Plotting Aid (ARPA), Automatic Identification System (AIS) and echo sounder. By bringing these inputs together, it gives navigators a consolidated picture of the vessel’s position, its surroundings and potential hazards. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) recognises compliant ECDIS, when used with appropriate official chart data, as meeting the relevant chart-carriage requirements under Chapter V of the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS). The distinction matters: an ordinary electronic display is not necessarily an ECDIS, and the use of unofficial chart data does not confer the same regulatory standing. Beyond Charts The system’s principal advantage lies in its ability to combine information and alert navigators to developing risks. It supports route planning and monitoring, checks proposed routes against configured safety parameters, displays the vessel’s position in real time and generates alarms when specified dangers or deviations are detected. Depending on the equipment and data available, radar, AIS, weather, tidal and other information can also be overlaid on the chart. This integration can reduce the burden of maintaining paper charts and manually plotting a vessel’s position. It can also help crews identify navigational hazards earlier, monitor their progress more efficiently and make better-informed decisions. In commercial shipping, where time, fuel consumption and operational reliability all matter, these benefits extend beyond safety to voyage efficiency. Yet ECDIS should not be mistaken for an autonomous navigator. Its alarms and safety checks depend on correctly configured settings, reliable sensor inputs and accurate chart information. Officers must understand what the system is displaying, recognise its limitations and retain the judgement to challenge misleading or incomplete information. The regulatory framework reflects the importance of getting this right. Under SOLAS Chapter V, ECDIS carriage became mandatory for specified categories of ships through a phased implementation schedule. The requirements cover, among others, new passenger ships of 500 gross tonnage and above and new cargo ships of 3,000 gross tonnage and above, subject to the applicable provisions and ship categories. The charts themselves are equally important. Official ENCs are vector charts produced to International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) standards. ECDIS processes this information into a System Electronic Navigational Chart (SENC), the internal database used by the equipment. Raster Navigational Charts (RNCs), by contrast, are digital images of paper charts. Software maintenance is therefore central to compliance. IHO standards have evolved, and equipment must remain compatible with the applicable requirements. New ECDIS installations have been expected to meet the relevant standards in force at installation, while existing systems require appropriate maintenance and upgrades. IMO guidance, including MSC.1/Circ.1503, has highlighted the importance of keeping ECDIS software properly maintained. Ship operators cannot assume that a system remains compliant simply because it was approved when first installed. Flag administrations and port-state control authorities may identify deficiencies where applicable requirements are not met. Maritime Imperative For India, these requirements carry particular significance. Its commercial shipping fleet operates within an international regulatory environment in which navigational safety, technical compliance and crew competence are inseparable. India has acceded to SOLAS and has used directives issued by the Directorate General of Shipping (DG Shipping) to implement applicable ECDIS carriage requirements. The government has also pursued the incorporation of relevant provisions into the domestic regulatory framework. DG Shipping has invoked Section 406(3) of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958, in connection with ECDIS carriage requirements and the conditions attached to statutory certification. Implementation schedules for Indian ships undertaking international voyages have been prescribed, with compliance subject to regulatory oversight. Training is the other indispensable element. Navigational officers serving on ECDIS-equipped vessels must receive the applicable training in accordance with the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW), including the Manila amendments of 2010. Officers must be competent in route planning, alarm interpretation, chart management, system limitations and the response to equipment failure. India has an established marine services sector capable of supporting this transition. Companies offer ECDIS upgrades and maintenance alongside services for AIS, anemometers, autopilots, bridge navigational watch alarm systems, compasses, echo sounders and Global Maritime Distress and Safety System equipment. Marine radar servicing, including X-band and S-band systems, and the maintenance of associated electronic equipment are also available across Indian ports and anchorages. Shipowners must ensure that upgrades are undertaken by competent personnel, that equipment remains properly maintained and that the documentation needed for class surveys and port-state inspections is in order. Periodic checks should be treated as an operational necessity rather than an expense to be deferred. ECDIS is most effective when official charts, updated software, dependable sensors, trained officers and disciplined bridge procedures work together. A failure in any one of these elements can compromise the whole arrangement. As shipping becomes more technologically sophisticated, ECDIS is set to remain a central platform for navigation aboard commercial vessels. Its value lies not simply in replacing paper charts, but in helping crews interpret their surroundings, anticipate hazards and manage voyages with greater precision. For India, effective implementation is therefore both a regulatory obligation and a strategic investment in safer shipping. The challenge is to move beyond carriage requirements and ensure continuing operational competence. (The writer is a retired naval aviation officer and defence and a geopolitical analyst. Views personal.)

Caste-based Census Sparks Nationwide Debate

Writer: Darshan Solanki
Darshan Solanki
Oct 2, 2024
3 min read

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

Caste-based Census

Caste-based identities continue to dominate rural India, directly or indirectly shaping electoral outcomes. Many major elections are influenced by specific caste groups. After the Bihar government released the first phase of its caste-based socio-economic survey, the caste census became a hot topic. The results, backed by evidence, showed improvements in the living standards and social status of marginalised communities, both in cities and villages. With parties like the JDU and NCP backing a caste census, there is growing momentum for the government to conduct one. However, every story has two sides—joy and sorrow. Even Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of the Nation, raised concerns about the caste census.

Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP of being “anti-Bahujan.” The clear meaning is that his father and forefather refused to execute a caste-based census, which might have far-reaching effects and even permanently fracture India’s social fabric. This may be negative for caste-based beneficiaries. The last caste census in India was conducted in 1931 by the British government. Those times were different from the present scenario. The data was made public and became the basis for the Mandal Commission Reports and reservation policies for Other Backward Classes. Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has clarified that the caste-based population count data will not be used for core politics. But the agenda for politics is always twisted and expanded.

The Central Government also joined the legal debate by filing an affidavit with the Supreme Court, leaving the matter unresolved. India’s partition, rooted in the divide-and-rule strategy, is frequently cited as a cautionary tale. Including caste in official census data could further deepen social divides. This issue has become a political pressure point, with various states pushing the Centre for action. Although the Constitution uses the term “class” instead of “caste,” the Supreme Court has consistently ruled that caste is a relevant, and at times, sole or dominant criterion for defining a backward class.

After the release of caste-based census data in Bihar, discussions around conducting similar censuses have gained momentum in states like Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, and Jharkhand. Karnataka, which has already conducted its own caste census, may release its data soon as well.

Notably, all these states are governed by anti-BJP parties. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also announced that Congress-ruled states have committed to carrying out caste censuses. Meanwhile, the BJP has remained silent on the matter, creating a significant roadblock.

Caste-based censuses focus on proportional representation in areas like jobs and education, with the argument that this will aid in targeted planning for the disadvantaged. However, the situation remains unclear, much like a foggy winter morning. The BJP’s stance on caste-based censuses and reservations seems different, as they fear the caste-based calculations could fragment their traditional Hindu voter base—an underlying concern for the party.

Professor Sanjay Kumar from The Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, says, “Let alone the BJP; no party can openly oppose it; it is not free from danger. BJP gets a large number of votes from the OBC community, their population across the country would be around 52%. Another downside is that the caste-based censuses could disrupt the balance of socio-economic zones. Data theft is a common issue in government systems, and people may feel disconnected from their actual rights.

The moot question is that if the financial status of an ST/SC/OBC or Dalit citizen moves up by a few notches, will his social status change automatically? The lifestyle of any class will only change when the income of a particular class is changed. The actual source of income is employment. The reality is that only metro cities have enough place and space for workers. Aside from the GIDC and IT sectors, less than 30% of industries have their own designated vacancy periods. After a decade, the Jamnagar and Rajkot Corporations have opened their doors to newcomers alongside experienced staff. However, age and caste bias often operate behind the scenes. It’s important to recognise that poverty is also widespread among many upper-caste individuals, and their needs cannot be overlooked. In the overall interests of the nation, terms like SC/ST/OBC, Dalits, etc. must be deleted from the nation’s vocabulary. Every citizen should have only one classification, that of being an ‘Indian’, in the spirit of the constitution.

Last year, when the Bihar government decided to conduct a caste survey in the state, the BJP was also Nitish Kumar’s partner in the state government, and it supported it. Political expert and former professor of Tata Institute of Social Science, Pushpendra Kumar, says, “It is not that the BJP does not talk about caste. It tries to reveal the caste of the Prime Minister as well. For caste politics, the BJP also tried hard to raise the issue of Pasmanda Muslims.”

(The writer is a management professional based in Ahmedabad. Views personal.)

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