Shipping Minister launches indigenous software solution for vessel traffic

In the inaugural address, Mandaviya put emphasis on the development of indigenous system as per the requirement of the country instead of relying high costing foreign made software solutions for Traffic Managements of the Indian Ports, the Ministry of Shipping said in a statement. VTS and VTMS is a software which determines vessel positions, position of other traffic or meteorological hazard warnings and extensive management of traffic within a port or waterway.

Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday e-launched an indigenous software solution for Vessel traffic services (VTS) and Vessels Traffic Monitoring Systems (VTMS). Presently, India has approximately 15 VTS systems operational along the Indian Coast and there is no uniformity of VTS software as each system has its own VTS software.

The Shipping Minister said that aligning with the vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ of Prime Minster Narendra Modi, 'Made In India' VTS and VTMS software will pave the way for 'Make for the world' vessel traffic management systems. In the inaugural address, Mandaviya put emphasis on the development of indigenous system as per the requirement of the country instead of relying high costing foreign made software solutions for Traffic Managements of the Indian Ports, the Ministry of Shipping said in a statement.

VTS and VTMS is a software which determines vessel positions, position of other traffic or meteorological hazard warnings and extensive management of traffic within a port or waterway. VTS contributes to safety of life at sea, safety and efficiency of navigation and protection of the marine environment, adjacent shore areas, work sites and offshore installations from possible adverse effects of maritime traffic.

The statement said with the help of the software, incidents and emergency situations can be dealt with quickly. Data from traffic movements can be stored and used as reference information for port administration, port authorities, coastguards and search and rescue services. VTMS is mandatory under IMO Convention SOLAS (Safety of Life at Sea).

The VTMS traffic image is compiled and collected by means of advanced sensors such as radar, direction finding, CCTV and other co-operative systems and services. "With the indigenous software development in progress the recent positive cooperation with office of Director General of Light and Lighthouses (DGLL) on joint development of the indigenous VTMS software development as part of the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative will strengthen the cooperation in this area," the statement said.

At the same time, it will benefit the port sector, both in India and region. It is expected that a prototype system will be developed in ten-month time for testing and to operate as a parallel system until it is robust for day to day operations. "Development of the indigenous VTS software will reduce the expenditure of foreign exchange on this issue and also minimize the dependence on foreign support for VTS software," the statement said.

VTS Software can be provided to Indian trade friendly nations like Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Gulf countries, it added. It said availability of Indian VTS software shall make Indian companies to be competitive commercially in global bids.

Ministry of Shipping has sanctioned an amount of Rs 10 crore to IIT, Chennai for development of indigenous VTS software. Senior officials of the Ministry of Shipping, Chairpersons of the Major Ports and representative of IIT, Chennai were also present through virtual means during the event.

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