Indian Register of Shipping opens new office in India

Classification group is seeking steps to promote sustainable ship recycling efforts.

The Indian Register of Shipping (IRC), a non-profit classification service based in Mumbai, India, has opened an office in Alang, India. The new office will work to support IRC’s ship recycling initiative in the Alang, which is home to a host of ship dismantling operations. The opening follows the organization’s recent initiative of certifying ship recycling yards according to EU standards as an independent verifier.

IR Class Systems and Solutions Pvt. Ltd. (ISSPL), an entity promoted by IRC, has certified four ship recycling yards in Alang as an independent verifier in accordance with the requirements of European Union Ship Recycling Regulation (EUSRR) 1257/2013.

A release from the IRC notes that at the present time about 25 ship recycling facilities in the Alang area have approached IRC for different services, including compliance audits for the Hong Kong Convention (HKC) , EU compliance audits  and ISO certifications.

Commenting on the opening of the new office, Arun Sharma, chairman of ISSPL, says, “It is an opportune time to have a presence in Alang. This is a step in the right direction in India’s transformation into an international maritime hub. As one of the first few organizations in the world to certify ship recycling yards, we believe we are at the forefront of change in encouraging sustainable ship recycling practice.

“We are pleased to play a major role in what we strongly believe in at IR Class – the preservation of life and property at sea and on shore.”

As part of its service, IRC will conduct training programs, mainly touching on the safety aspects of ship recycling.

According to the Hong Kong Convention, the aim of sustainable ship recycling is to ensure that ships when recycled, do not pose any unnecessary risks to human health, safety and to the environment.