Government of India Ministry of Commerce. Report of the Sailing Vessels Committee (May 1949)

The Dalal enters the ship in the Customs; he is resilonsible for finding cargo for the ship; he buys provisions and stores for the ship and rations for the seamen; he fixes the amount of cargo to be loaded and the rate of freight to be charged and finally he clears the vessel on her outward voyage. [...] The Committee however felt that absence of any load line whatsoever was one of the main causes of even genuine cases of jettisoning and often of loss of vessels with cargo and men: as without a Plimsoll mark the temptation to overload the ship more often than -not proves irresistible to the owner the broker and or the crew. [...] A§ most of these vessels are coasting and keep well within.view of the coast the master and the owner of the vessel or the master and the broker at the port of departure often without the connivance of the owner make arrangements for 'staging a jettison' at a previously fixed point as conveniently secluded as possible. [...] This process naturally requires the co-operation of a number of men to form the gang; the despatcher the receiver the lighterman the whole crew of the vessel and w? regret to add often even the petty port. [...] The Committee however is inclined to agree with some of the witnesses who suggested that the Master of the vessel should be made responsible for the cost of any excess consumption of fuel over the amount which by experience can be estimated to be sufficient to meet the reasonable use of the engine This kind of arrangement the Committee was informed is fairly common in other countries espec