An One-Day Workshop on "Entry into Force of the Hong Kong Convention – The Way Forward " was jointly organised by the Directorate General of Shipping and Gujarat Maritime Board partnering with the Ship Recycling Industries Association, Bhavnagar and the Institute of Marine Engineers India at Bhavnagar, Gujarat on 30 th June 2025. The event had a huge response attended by various stake holders of the Ship Recycling industry welcoming the arrival of HKC in Ship Recycling .

The event, marked the historic enforcement of the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships (HKC) . Welcome address of the event was provided by the Vice Chairman & CEO of Gujarat Maritime Board. Shri. Rajkumar Beniwal , IAS . The event was attended by Officials from the Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Directorate General of Shipping, Gujarat Maritime Board (GMB), local District Administration, Regulatory bodies involved in Ship Recycling and members from Ship Recycling industry associations, Representatives of Classification societies, Trade Unions and Workers association and other related stakeholders.

Chief Guest Shri Shyam Jagannathan, IAS, Director General of Shipping during his address emphasized the need of Cooperation between the National Authority and the Competent Authority and called upon GMB for a five point mechanism towards developing a structured digital platform interface towards seamless coordination including compliance verification and third-party inspections, to share GMB's long-term Master Plan on expansion activities along the Alang-Sosia belt, including proposals for TSDF facility development, Institutionalize training programmes for capacity-building of workers and to  impart training along with a structured course for sustainable recycling, to include the successful Wellness and Inclusion Initiatives of seafarers such as "Sagar Mei Yog"  &  "Sagar Mei Samman"  aimed at focusing on improving the physical and mental wellness & promoting gender equality extended to the ship recycling workforce , to establish an annual forum hosted by GMB bringing together national and international stakeholders to discuss best practices, innovations, and compliance pathways in ship recycling and also requested Detailed Project Reports from GMB for coordinated implementation with local authorities to enhance social and public infrastructure, focusing on improving the living conditions, health services, and overall welfare of workers engaged in ship recycling activities. The need of Standardization of the activities in Ship recycling was also emphasized.

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