Ratings Seminar in Kochi and Chennai

More than 200 ratings came together in Kochi and Chennai for a series of seminars focused on safety, performance and wellbeing. The sessions reflect our continued effort to strengthen safety culture across all ranks.

The seminars gave our leadership a clear forum to reinforce expectations on performance, safe operations and personal wellbeing.

Safety Culture Starts With Officers

“Safety is a daily behaviour, not a slogan,” said Capt. Krishna Bharathan, Assistant General Manager, HSSEQ. His session reviewed incidents and examined why they occur, even when procedures, training and competent teams are in place.

Drawing on his experience as a former Master, he stressed that officers set the standard. This starts with proper planning, clear briefings, active supervision and timely close-out of deficiencies.

The session was practical and interactive. Attendees discussed topics such as weak risk assessments, normalisation of risk and ineffective toolbox meetings.

Leading Through Client Expectations

For officers, performance goes beyond technical delivery. It depends on clear communication, consistent standards and reliable operations onboard.

Amitabh Gupta, General Manager, Technical, and Samrat Bannerji, Deputy General Manager, Technical, led a session on how clients assess a ship manager through the performance of its seafarers.

Through case studies, they showed how similar technical issues can lead to very different outcomes depending on how leaders respond.

Wellbeing: A Performance Enabler

Wellbeing has a direct impact on how ships operate. It affects alertness, judgement and teamwork.

Divya Nair, our in-house clinical psychologist, and Capt. Randhir Mahadik, Head of Fleet Care, spoke about the support available to seafarers, trainees and families through our wellbeing programmes.

The session included practical scenarios, simple exercises and live feedback from participants

Leadership vision

Jagjit Singh, Executive Director, Tankers, spoke about pride, professionalism and ownership. He reinforced that our direction depends on safety, reliability, customer trust and a people-first culture.

He highlighted that procedures only work when they are followed consistently. Open communication depends on leaders creating space for people to speak up. Safety becomes a value when officers protect it under pressure.

He encouraged officers to make toolbox meetings more engaging, protect rest hours, support Stop Work Authority and create an environment where concerns can be raised without hesitation.

Long Service Recognition

Across both seminars, one point stood out. Many attendees have built long careers with us. The average service length was 13 years.

This reflects our ability to retain and develop experienced seafarers, many of whom now serve at senior officer level.

We also recognised long service milestones, with awards presented to officers completing 15, 20 and 25 years.

The Way Forward

The seminars reinforced a clear message. Safety and performance are closely linked. Officers connect them through daily discipline, strong leadership and consistent ship–shore alignment.

We will continue to support our seafarers with practical learning that reflects real vessel operations. This helps every team deliver safe, reliable and consistent performance for every voyage.