Merchant Shipping National Shipping Board Rules 2026 under

Merchant Shipping National Shipping Board Rules 2026 under Merchant Shipping Act 2025

The Gazette of India

CG-DL-E-23052026-272836

EXTRAORDINARY

PART II—Section 3—Sub-section (i)

PUBLISHED BY AUTHORITY

No. 344] NEW DELHI, WEDNESDAY, MAY 20, 2026/VAISAKHA 30, 1948

MINISTRY OF PORTS, SHIPPING AND WATERWAYS
NOTIFICATION
New Delhi, the 20th May, 2026

G.S.R. 379(E).— In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) and clause (a) of sub-section (2) of
section 6 read with sub-sections (8) and (9) of section 4 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025 (24 of 2025) and in
supersession of the National Shipping Board Rules, 1960, except as respects things done or omitted to be done before such supersession, the Central Government hereby makes the following rules, namely: —

1. Short title. — (1) These rules may be called the National Shipping Board Rules, 2026.
(2) They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

2. Definitions. — (1) In these rules, unless the context otherwise requires,—
(a) “Act” means the Merchant Shipping Act, 2025 (24 of 2025);
(b) “Board” means the National Shipping Board established under sub – section (1) of section 4 of the Act;
(c) “Chairperson” means the Chairperson of the National Shipping Board nominated under sub-section (4) of
section 4 of the Act;
(d) “non-official member” means a member of the Board, who is not an official member or a Member of
Parliament;
(e) “Official member” means a member of the Board, who is a serving government officer nominated ex officio
or otherwise by the Central Government, or a person whose membership arises directly from holding any
office under the Central Government, a State Government, or a statutory authority;
(f) “Secretary” means the Secretary of the Board.
(2) Words and expressions used in these rules and not defined, but defined in the Act shall have the meanings
respectively assigned to them in the Act.

3. Establishment of Board. — (1) The Central Government shall, by notification, establish a Board with the
composition as specified in sub-section (2) of section 4 for a period of two years in the first instance and shall thereafter re-establish the Board at the end of every two years:
Provided that where the Board is not established by the Central Government upon the expiry of two years
from the date of its establishment or re-establishment, the existing Board shall continue to function till the successive board is constituted, subject to a maximum period of six months.
(3) The re-establishment of the Board shall not affect the validity of any action taken or decision made by the Board during its previous term.

4. Term of office of members and filling of casual vacancies. — (1) The Chairperson and other members of the Board, excluding the six members of Parliament, shall hold office for a period of two years.
(2) A casual vacancy in the office of Chairperson shall be filled by nomination by the Central Government.
(3) A casual vacancy in the office of a member who is a Member of Parliament shall be filled by way of election
in the manner specified under clause (a) of sub-section (2) of section 4 of the Act.
(4) A casual vacancy in the office of any other member shall be filled by way of appointment by the Central
Government.
(5) The Chairperson or member so nominated, elected, or appointed to fill such vacancy shall hold office only for
the remainder of the term of the Chairperson or the member whose place is filled.

5. Resignation by Chairperson and member of Board. — (1) The Chairperson may resign by communicating in
writing to the Central Government and a member may resign by communicating in writing to the Chairperson:
Provided that the Chairperson or member shall continue in office until the resignation takes effect.
(2) The resignation shall not take effect until accepted or until the expiry of thirty days from the date of receipt of
the letter of resignation, by the Central Government or, as the case may be, by the Chairperson, whichever is earlier.

6. Removal of Chairperson and members from office. —(1) The Central Government may, at any time, remove from
office the Chairperson or any member of the Board, if he —
(a) is absent from India continuously for a period exceeding six months without permission of the Board;
(b) is absent from three consecutive meetings without permission of the Board;
(c) has been adjudged as an insolvent;
(d) has been convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude in the opinion of the Central Government; or
(e) in the opinion of the Central Government, has ceased to represent the interests on whose behalf he was
appointed.

(2) The Central Government may remove a member, after recording reasons in writing and providing an opportunity of
being heard to such member, if it considers it undesirable for such person to continue as a member.

7. Secretary of Board. — (1) The Central Government shall appoint one of the members of the Board or any other
person as Secretary of the Board.
(2) The Secretary shall be under the general control of the Board and shall assist the Chairperson in the discharge of his functions, including—

(a) convening meetings of the Board under the directions of the Chairperson;
(b) maintaining the minute books of the Board; and
(c) performing other duties as entrusted by the Board.

8. Secretarial assistance to Board. — (1) The Board shall be provided with adequate secretarial assistance by the
Director – General.
(2) The Director-General shall appoint such staff as may be required for the work of the Board, which shall form part of the establishment of the Director-General.
(3) The salaries, allowances, and other expenditure incurred thereon shall be met from the budget of the office of the Director-General.

9. Headquarters of Board. — (1) The headquarters of the Board shall be located at New Delhi.
(2) The Central Government shall provide office premises to the Board for the purpose of discharging its functions
under the Act and these rules.

10. Service conditions of Chairperson of Board.- The remuneration and other facilities admissible to the Chairperson of the Board shall be such as may be specified by the Central Government, by way of order, from time to time.

11. Travelling and daily allowances of members. — (1) The members of the Board shall be entitled to travelling and
daily allowances as specified in Schedule I.
(2) The Director – General or the Additional Director – General shall be the Controlling Officer in respect of travelling allowance and daily allowance for the non-official members of the Board.
12. Rules of procedure of National Shipping Board. —The procedure to be followed by the Board in the conduct of
its business shall be as specified in Schedule II.

Schedule — I
[See rule 11]

Travelling and daily allowance of members
1. Non-official members (Other than members of Parliament). — The non-official members of the Board shall be
entitled to travelling and daily allowances at the rates prescribed under the Office Memorandum No. 19047/1/2016-E.
IV, dated the 14th September, 2017 of the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, Government of India, as amended from time to time.
2. Members of Parliament. — The members of Parliament serving on the Board shall be entitled to travelling and daily allowances at the rates prescribed under the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954 (30 of 1954), and the Members of Parliament (Travelling and Daily Allowances) Rules, 1957, as amended from time to time.
3. Official members.— The official members serving on the Board shall be entitled to traveling and daily allowances
at the rates prescribed under the Office Memorandum No. 19030/1/2-17-E.IV, dated the 13th July, 2017 of the
Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, Government of India, as amended from time to time.

Schedule II
[See rule 12]

Rules of procedure of the National Shipping Board
2. Procedure for conduct of business.— (a) The Board shall normally meet once every three months and
meetings shall be convened by the Chairperson of the Board.
(b) The Board shall meet at such time and place as may be decided by the Chairperson.
(c) Notice of at least fifteen days shall be given of the time and place fixed for each meeting to every member of the
Board and be delivered by hand, or speed post to the last known address, or communicated through electronic
means including e-mail as approved by the Board.
(d) Non-receipt of notice by a member, duly forwarded or sent by the Secretary of the Board, shall not invalidate the proceedings of the meeting.
(e) Subject to the provisions of sub-paragraph (c), if the Chairperson considers a matter urgent, a notice of such
reasonable time as he deems necessary shall be sufficient.
(f) A list of business proposed to be transacted shall accompany the notice or be forwarded by the secretary to each
member as soon as possible after sending the notice.
(g) A member desiring discussion of any specific item or to make a substantial proposition at a meeting shall submit a written notice to the Secretary at least seven days before the date fixed for the meeting and sufficient data shall be provided to enable proper discussion of the item:

Provided that the Chairperson may at his discretion, for reasons to be recorded in writing, permit the member with
a shorter discussion, if it is in the overall benefit of the matters before or likely to come before the Board.
(h) Business not included in the list of items shall not be considered at the meeting, except with the permission of the Chairperson.
(i) The Chairperson shall preside over every meeting and in his absence, the members present shall choose one among themselves to preside at the meeting.
(j) The Cha
(k) irperson shall regulate the procedure at all meetings, including adjourning the meeting when necessary.

2. Extra-ordinary meetings.— (a) Upon a written requisition by not less than five members, the Chairperson shall
convene an extra-ordinary meeting as soon as possible, and in any case not later than fifteen days from the date of
requisition.
(b) The notice of meeting referred under sub-paragraph (a) along with the copy of the requisition, which shall state the objects of the proposed meeting, shall be delivered by hand, or registered post to the last known address, or
communicated through electronic means including e-mail as approved by the Board.
(c) Non-receipt of notice by a member, duly forwarded or sent by the Secretary, shall not invalidate the proceedings of the meeting.

3. Quorum. — (a) No business shall be transacted unless at least eight members are present.
(b) If at any meeting the number of members is less than the required quorum, the Chairperson or in his absence, the member presiding at the meeting shall adjourn meeting to a date not less than seven days later, informing the members present and also the other members of the date, time and place of the adjourned meeting and it shall thereupon be lawful to dispose of the business at such adjourned meeting whether the quorum is secured or not.

4. Minutes of meetings.— (a) The minutes of proceedings shall be drawn up by the Secretary and circulated to all
members.
(b) The minutes, along with any suggested amendments, shall be placed for confirmation at the next meeting.
(c) Once confirmed and signed by the Chairperson or presiding member, the minutes shall be recorded in a minute book,
which shall be available for inspection by members during office hours.

5. Recommendations.— Decisions of the Board requiring further action shall be recorded as recommendations and
forwarded to the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.

6. Voting.— (a) Ordinarily, decisions shall not be arrived at without taking votes. In case of disagreement among
members, the fact of disagreement shall be recorded in the minutes.
(b) The Chairperson or in his absence, member presiding at the meeting, may decide any question by majority vote and in case of an equal division of votes, the Chairperson shall have a casting vote.

7. Non-members attending meetings.— The Chairperson may invite any person, who is not a member of the Board,
to attend meetings and participate in discussions but such persons shall not be entitled to vote.

8. Sub-committees.— The Board may appoint one or more sub-committees, standing or otherwise, to facilitate the
functioning of the Board.

9. Working year of Board.— The working year of the Board shall commence on 1st April of every year and end on
31st March of the following year.

10. Annual reports.— The Board shall submit an annual report to the Central Government detailing its work during
the year.

11. Communications to members.— All communications to members shall be transmitted by hand, or by speed post
to the last known address, or communicated through electronic means including e-mail as approved by the Board.

[F. No. SY-19014/185/2025-MG]
MUKESH MANGAL, Addl. Secy.

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